USA > New Hampshire > Belknap County > Biographical review : containing life sketches of leading citizens of Stafford and Belknap countries, New Hampshire > Part 22
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who died at the age of sixteen years; Melvin S., who now resides at the homestead in Dex- ter; Franklin P. and Elbridge G., now resi- dents of Ashland, N. H. ; Willard A., of Au- gusta, Me .; and Lizzie M., who married Charles H. Haines, and is now deceased. The father was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church.
James Nelson Nichols acquired his educa- tion in the public schools, and served an ap- prenticeship at the machinist's and mill- wright's trades. After working as a journey- man in different places, including a period of six years spent in a machine shop of Newton, Mass., he, in 1872, became superintendent of the paper-mill in Ashland. He has efficiently filled that responsible position since then, with the exception of about three years, which his enfeebled health obliged him to employ otherwise. This interval he passed upon a farm which he bought in 1891, and where he fully regained his health in 1894. The farm contains eighty-five acres, twenty of which are under cultivation. Here, with the assistance of a hired man, he makes annually a consider- able quanity of butter of a superior quality, keeping a herd of thorough-bred Jersey cows, a small flock of sheep and two horses.
Mr. Nichols married Lizzie M. Painc, daughter of Josiah Paine, of Abbott, Me. Both he and Mrs. Nichols are members of the Congregational church. Mr. Nichols was for five years superintendent of the Free Baptist Sunday-school in Ashland. He is connected with Harmony Grange of Sanbornton. In pol- itics he acts with the Republican party.
D AVID HAYES, of Rochester, an ex- tensive dealer in coal, wood, hay, and ice, was born in Alton, N. II., March 7, 1824, son of Joseph and Betsy
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(Brewster) Hayes, the father a native of Alton, and the mother of Wolfboro, N. H. Joseph Hayes followed farming, was a pros- perous and enterprising citizen, and the father of eight children. In his political views he was a Whig of the old school. He lived to be about seventy-five years old; and his wife, who came of a prominent family and was a sister of John Brewster, the founder of Wolfeboro Col- lege, was about seventy-six years of age at her death.
David Hayes spent the early years of his life on the homestead. He received his edu- cation in the common schools and at Strafford and Gilmanton Academies, graduating from the latter institution when about twenty years of age. The following year he spent in Mas- sachusetts, working at farming in the summer and teaching a country school in the winter. Returning to Alton then, he continued to fol- low his plan of summer farming and winter teaching for about ten years, teaching two terms of school each winter. The next five years were spent in Farmington, where he had a position as cutter in the shoe shop. After that he came to Rochester and followed the same business for about twenty years. On leaving the shoe business, he started in the grain and grocery business; then went into the coal and wood business, and three or four years later added ice and hay to his stock. He now has a large and profitable trade.
On Christmas Day, 1851, Mr. Hayes mar- ried Miss Susan Pollard, of Somersworth, N. H. She died in May, 1859, leaving three children. These were: Fannie, who died at the age of twenty-three; Alonzo, who is en- gaged in a mercantile business in Leroy, Minn. ; and Charles F., who has a successful real estate business in Chicago, Ill. In 1861 Mr. Hayes formed a second union with Miss Abbie B. Gibbs, of Essex, Mass. In national
affairs he supports the Republican party, but is independent in local matters. He was Tax Collector for one year, and he served two ycars on the School Board. In Humane Lodge, No. 21, F. & A. M., he is a Past Master. He is a member of the Congrega- tional church.
AMES D. MEADER, a successful farmer and horse dealer of Durham, Strafford County, was born on the home farm, December 31, 1852, son of Stephen and Mary J. (Pinkham) Meader. The founder of the family in this country was his great-grand- father Stephen. John Meader was his grand- father. Stephen Mcader (second) was also born on the old homestead, and resided here his entire life. During his active years he was engaged in farming. In politics he was a loyal Republican, and he served the town acceptably in the office of Selectman. His wife, Mary J., born in Durham, December 31, 1823, bore him four children. These were : Mary Augusta, the wife of Cyrus Rand; Jacob T., who died in 1869; James D., the subject of this sketch; and Ida I., who married Will- iam J. Martin, of New Market. Mr. Meader was a highly respected member of the Baptist church. He died October 22, 1890, in the seventy-first year of his age, leaving an un- blemished record.
James D. Meader supplemented his common- school education by a course of study in the village academy of Northwood, N. H. His fine farm of one hundred and seventy acres, lo- cated on the Durham Point Road, four miles north of Durham, speaks well for his thrift and energy. He carries on general farming, and also deals advantageously in horses. In politics he affiliates with the Republican party. In 1870 Mr. Meader was married to Emma A. Perkins, of New Market, N. H.
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They have four children - Frederick P., Alice M., Blanche E., and Julia E. Frederick P. resides in Rochester, N. H., where he is the manager and proprietor of a fine music store. Alice M., who was graduated from New Mar- ket High School, is also a resident of that town. Blanche E. is also a graduate from the same institution, and Julia E. is now pur- suing a course of study there. Mr. Meader is a member of Rising Star Lodge, F. & A. M. of New Market.
D ANIEL H. MOULTON, a large farmer of Gilmanton, and a descend- ant of one of the founders of Moul- tonboro, was born in Ellsworth, N. H., De- cember 4, 1850, son of Chase P. and Sarah (Pillsbury) Moulton. The Moulton family is of English origin. Edmund M. Moulton, grandfather of Daniel H., settled in Ells- worth when a young man, and engaged in agri- cultural pursuits. He was an industrious man, a worthy citizen, and an active religious · worker. His last days were spent in Camp- ton, N. H., and he died in 1857. His chil- dren were: Daniel, Gideon, Martha, Betsey, Edmund, Jonathan, Lucretia, Benjamin, Lu- cinda, and Chase P. Daniel, Gideon, Joseph, and Lucinda are no longer living. Benjamin resides in Minnesota; Jonathan lives in Wood- stock, N. H. ; and all the survivors have reared families.
Chase P. Moulton was born in Ellsworth, and resided there until he was thirty years old. He then moved to Campton, where he remained eight years, at the end of which time he settled upon his present farm in Thornton, N. H. He is a prosperous farmer. For two years he represented the town in the legis- lature. His wife, Sarah, is a daughter of Caleb Pillsbury, a prominent agriculturist of Bridgewater, N. H., in his day. The Pillsbury
family have notable annual reunions. Mr. and Mrs. Chase P. Moulton have had five children, four of whom are living, namely : Arthur C., who resides with his parents at the home- stead; Clara A., a graduate of the Plymouth Normal School, and the wife of Albert Ran- dall, a machinist of Worcester, Mass. ; John IV., who is married and lives in Greendale, Mass., having one child; and Daniel H., the subject of this sketch.
Daniel H. Moulton was educated in Camp- ton and Thornton. At an early age he began to make himself useful upon the farm. Pre- vious to his marriage he was engaged in the lumber business with his brother, Arthur C., in Woodstock, for eight months. Then he bought a farm of one hundred acres, situated at the foot of Mount Belknap in the town of Gil- manton. From a small beginning he has worked his way forward to the prominent place he now occupies among the leading agricult- urists of this section. As the result of his in- dustry, he now owns six hundred acres of land, constituting one of the largest farms in Gil- manton.
At the age of twenty-three Mr. Moulton was joined in marriage with Emma H. Page. Her father, R. WV. Page, was a large land-owner and successful drover. A man of scholarly attainments and a forcible speaker, he was a leader of the Republican party in this section, and he ably represented this district in the legislature during the exciting times of the Civil War. His wife, Abbie T., was a daughter of Jonathan Sanborn. He bought of George W. Sanborn the farm which he later sold to his son-in-law, Daniel H. Moulton. R. W. Page was an active member of the Con- gregational church. Mrs. Moulton was grad- uated from the Gilmanton Academy, and taught school for several terms previous to her marriage. She is the mother of two children
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- Lena A. and Carroll Harrison. Lena A. graduated from the Gilmanton Academy in June, 1896.
LONZO B. LANG, a successful farmer of Alton, and an ex-member of the New Hampshire legislature, was born in this town, April 5, 1842, son of John and Mary Jane (Webb) Lang. His grand- father, William Lang, who emigrated from England in company with his two brothers, resided in Newington, N. H., for a short time, and then settled in Alton. William cleared a farm, upon which he passed the rest of his life; and he lived to be over eighty years old. He married in Newington, and had one son, named John.
John Lang, Alonzo B. Lang's father, en- gaged in farming with his father. He added more land to the farm, which fell to his pos- session ; and he owned about one hundred and fifty acres at Lang's Corner, which took its name from the family. He operated one of the first saw-mills in this town, kept a store in which the post-office was located for many years, was interested in other enterprises, and was one of the most prosperous residents of Alton in his day. He was a Democrat in pol- itics, and he served as a Selectman for some time. In religious affairs he took a prominent part, and attended meetings held in different schoolhouses. He died at the age of fifty- six years. His wife, Mary Jane, who was a native of Madbury, N. H., became the mother of seven children - Charles L., Mary Jane, John Jackson, Martin V. B., William H. B., Alonzo B., and Melissa A. Charles L. is now residing in New York State, and has a family. Mary Jane married John Dow, of North Barnstead. John J. succeeded his father as postmaster, and resided at the home- stead until his death. Martin V. B. is mar-
ried, and follows the calling of a shoemaker in Farmington, N. H. William H. B. died at the age of twenty-two years. Melissa A. mar- ried George P. Miller, who served in the Civil War, and she now resides at Alton Cor- ner. Mrs. John Lang died June 2, 1884, over eighty years old.
Alonzo B. Lang attended school in his dis- trict, and resided at home until twenty-one years old. He then went to the northern part of New York State, where he was engaged in making starch for five years. After his return to New Hampshire he worked at shoemaking for a year. He next entered the employ of the Boston and Maine Railroad Company, finally becoming a locomotive engineer. After nine years of service, he joined his associates in a strike, and did not subsequently return to the company's service. He has since followed agricultural pursuits with energy, and owns a farm of about one hundred and sixty acres. He supports the Democratic party in politics, has served in town offices, and spent a two- year term in the legislature, where he was a member of the Committee on Military Affairs.
Mr. Lang wedded Mary A. Stevens, daugh- ter of John and Jane (Roberts) Stevens, the former of whom was born in 1811 on the farm now owned by Mr. Lang. This farm was cleared and improved by Mrs. Lang's grand- father, also named John Stevens, who resided here for the rest of his life. John Stevens (first) lost his parents when young, and was bound out to Edwin Libby, of Alton. After serving his time he bought a farm in New Durham, Strafford County, and later returned to Alton. While living with Edwin Libby, he attended school but three days. After- ward, under the tuition of his wife, he learned to read the Bible, and in time became an authority upon scriptural subjects. His wife's maiden name was Lydia Horne, and his chil-
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dren were : William, James, John, and Betsey, none of whom are living. William and James married and reared families, and Betsey be- came the wife of Asa Chamberlain. The father died August 10, 1882, aged sixty-nine years; and his wife, April . 19, 1888, aged seventy-four. Mrs. Lang's father succeeded to the homestead and increased its acreage by adding more land; served as a Selectman and upon the School Committee; was a Democrat in politics; in religion, a Universalist; and he died in 1881, aged seventy years. His wife, Jane, who was born in 1813, was a daughter of Silas and Sarah (Davis) Roberts. Her father, who was a native of Dover, N. H., and a shoemaker by. trade, had a family of twelve children. She became the mother of three children ; namely, Ellen J., Mary A., and John P. Ellen J. married John C. Nut- ter, of Gilmanton, and is no longer living; and John P. died at the age of eight years. Mrs. John Stevens is still living, and resides with her daughter. Mr. and Mrs. Lang have two sons - Walter A. and Harry B. Walter A. is a clerk in a grocery store at Beverly, Mass. ; and Harry B. lives at home with his parents. Mr. Lang is a member of Winnepe- saukee Lodge, No. 75, F. & A. M .; Past Chancellor of Cocheco Lodge, No. 28, Knights of Pythias; and he is connected with Merry Meeting Grange, No. 155.
EORGE B. COX, a successful attor- ney of Laconia and counsel for the New Hampshire State Law and Order League, was born in Ashland, Grafton County, N. H., July 16, 1860, son of Benjamin Franklin and Ann (Currier) Cox. His pater- nal ancestors were among the first settlers of Holderness (now Ashland), N. H. ; and his mother's family was of Scotch descent. The
great-grandfather of the present generation of the Cox family was a man of considerable wealth and prominence, who took an important part in public affairs, and who owned the only covered carriage in the town, a circumstance which added greatly to his dignity.
Wallace Cox, grandfather of the subject of this sketch, was a native and lifelong resident of Holderness. He owned a large farm, and his active period was devoted to its cultiva- tion. He was by nature a quiet, unassuming man, holding himself aloof from all matters which might lead to public notoriety; and he was a member of the Episcopal church. He married Hannah Kimball, a native of Holder- ness, and reared a family of five children, of whom the only survivor is William Cox, a res- ident of Lowell.
Benjamin Franklin Cox, son of Wallace and father of George B., was born in Holder- ness, and there reared to agricultural pursuits. He took an active interest in the town govern- ment, and was elected to various offices, serv- ing with ability and faithfulness. He married Ann Currier, a daughter of William Currier, of Plymouth, N. H. ; and they became the parents of but one child, George B., the subject of this sketch. Benjamin F. Cox died at the age of fifty-eight years. Mrs. Cox, his widow, is still living, and is now fifty-nine years old.
George B. Cox was educated in the public schools of Ashland and Plymouth, the New Hampton Literary Institution, and Wesleyan University. Previous to entering the law school, Mr. Cox taught school in Candia for one year, and served as superintendent of schools in the town of Ashland. In 1885 he began his legal studies with Judge Hibbard, of Laconia, and two years later entered the Bos- ton University Law School, where he was graduated in 1888, with the degree of Bachelor of Law. Admitted to the bar in July of the
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same year, he associated himself with N. J. Dyer; and the firm of Cox & Dyer conducted a general law business in Laconia until 1894.
In politics Mr. Cox is a Democrat, and has frequently stumped the State in the inter- est of his party. He served as a member of the School Board for three years, acting as its Chairman during his last term. In 1890 the Citizens' Temperance Union was formed in Laconia, and for four years he was retained as its counsel. In January, 1894, Mr. Cox was elected a member of the Executive Com- mittee of the Law and Order League of New Hampshire, a strong temperance organization, supported by many of the most influential citi- zens of the State, and is still serving as such. In 1895 he was retained as counsel for the league, and is still acting in that capacity. He has labored diligently and successfully in forwarding the aims and purposes of the league, having worked exclusively in its in- terests for six months, but of late, owing to the demands of his law practice, has been obliged, to a certain extent, to relinquish his efforts in its behalf. Mr. Cox has also per- formed some work in the lecture field in his native State during the past four years, his recent efforts in this line being confined mainly to the subject of temperance.
ILLIAM M. HERRING, an es- tecmed citizen of Strafford County, New Hampshire, residing in Farm- ington, was born in this town, February 9,
1859. His father, the late Hon. George M. Herring, son of Seth and Deborah Herring, was born in Framingham, Mass., in 1812. He learned the shoemaker's trade in Natick, Mass. His shop-mates at this time were Mar- tin L. Hayes and Henry Wilson, who later in life was Senator from Massachusetts and after-
ward Vice- President of the United States. George M. Herring in his early manhood came to Strafford County, locating in this place in 1843. For a time he carried on a good busi- ness in general merchandise. He subse- quently engaged in the manufacture of shoes, having a large shop on the present site of the Opera House, and continued in that occupa- tion until his demise on September 26, 1875, at the age of sixty-three years. His body was interred in the family lot in the beautiful cemetery of South Framingham, Mass.
George M. Herring was a stanch Republi- can in politics, very active in public affairs. He served as a member of the State Senate in the years 1855 and 1856, and in 1870 and 1871 in the House of Representatives. He was also United States Assessor for the First District of New Hampshire, serving in that capacity from 1862 to 1869, having been ap- pointed by President Lincoln. He was Presi- dent of the Farmington Savings Bank and Farmington Fire Insurance Company and Di- rector of the D. & W. Railroad Company. It was mainly by his persistency that the Farm- ington National Bank was chartered, of which he was President from its commencement to the time of his death. In 1845 he united with the Congregational church, was a Deacon at the time of his death, and for many years superin- tendent of the Sunday-school. During all these years he studied constantly, and often gave lectures on astronomy and geology. He also sometimes preached when his pastor was absent. Captain Herring, as he was famil- iarly called, did more than any other man in building up and establishing the shoe business in Farmington.
He married Ellen E. Eames, of South Framingham, Mass., in 1844, and they reared four children, namely : Mary E., wife of D. S. Dockham, of Manchester; E. Grace, wife
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of A. F. Waldron, of Farmington ; Sadie M., wife of Fred Watson, of Manchester; and William M., whose name heads the present sketch.
William M. Herring was brought up and educated in Farmington, being graduated at the High School in 1877, and since early manhood has been identified with the mercan- tile interests of the town. His first experi- ence in this line of business was with the firm of Dockham & Nute Brothers, of Farmington, by whom he was employed as a clerk a year or more. In 1882, when Mr. J. F. Hall bought his store, he accepted a position with him, and has since continued in his service as head clerk and book-keeper, earning a deserved reputation for ability and trustworthiness, and by his courteous kindness and attention to customers assisting in building up the large trade of his employer.
Mr. Herring was married June 14, 1893, to Miss Edith E. Pinkham, of Farmington, a daughter of Levi L. and Augusta Pinkham. Brought up as a Republican in politics, he has never swerved from party allegiance, and, notwithstanding his disinclination for public office, in 1895 and 1896 he was a Represent- ative to the General Court at Concord, N. H., and served as one of the Committee on Educa- tion. Fraternally, he is a member of Har- mony Lodge, No. 1I, K. of P. Mr. and Mrs. Herring attend the Congregational church and contribute cheerfully to its support.
IVERETT M. SINCLAIR, agent of the Cocheco Mills at Rochester, Strafford County, N.H., was born in Lisbon, Me., August 16, 1848, son of Moses and Lucretia Totman Sinclair. In the records of the Sinclair family in America is found the name of one John Sinclair, a pioneer settler of
Exeter, N.H., who is thought to have been the father of Robert Sinclair, of Wells, Me. In the archives of the town of Wells there is a record of a grant of one hundred and ten acres of meadow land being given to this same Robert in 1712. There is also a deed signed by another John, his son, in 1734, showing that he must have been at that time at least twenty-one years of age. John Sinclair, the younger, removed to Boston in 1744, and be- came a volunteer under Captain John Stover for the expedition that captured Louisburg in 1745. The troops sailed from Boston, March 24, and were forty-nine days in reducing the stronghold. This same John later became a resident of Arundel, where "for not frequent- ing the Public Worship of God on the Lord's day for six months, from January 1, 1749," he was brought before the court and fined. He married Mary Wakefield, and their two chil- dren were Adoniram and Mary.
Adoniram located in Lisbon, Me., about 1760, and was one of the earliest dwellers in the town. It was then a wilderness, and the land had to be reclaimed and reduced to culti- vation. Adoniram Sinclair cleared about one hundred and fifty acres, and had a beautiful and productive farm before his death. His son, John, third, inherited the estate, and was a prominent citizen of Lisbon. He was known to have remarkable judgment, and was universally beloved and respected. In relig- ion he was a Baptist. He married Mrs. Mary Hyde Harmon, of Roxbury, Mass., a woman of strong character and marked executive ability.
Moses, son of John and Mary Sinclair, and father of Mr. Everett M. Sinclair, was born on the farm at Lisbon, March 15, 1807. When only nine months old he fell into an open fire-place, and his left hand and arm were crippled for life on account of the severe burns received. He was consequently much
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at home with his mother, and there was a re- markably strong attachment between them. When he was nineteen years of age his mother died, and he was plunged into the deepest grief. He remained at home until he had reached his majority, and in his twenty-second year he went to Bath, where he was employed for three years upon the farm connected with the hospital. He then went back to the home farm, and stayed until he was thirty years old. when he went into the lumber business at Little River Village, now Lisbon Falls. There he had an interest in a saw-mill, and later owned a shingle and clapboard-mill. In 1852 a destructive fire caused the loss of these buildings, and after this he went to East Auburn, where for three years he was engaged in a grocery business. He next purchased a small farm, and devoted himself to farming until his death, September 28, 1883. The tastes of Mr. Moses Sinclair were strongly domestic. He was devotedly attached to his home and family, and no sacrifice was great when made for them. This same kindness of heart and generosity of mind made him be- loved by all with whom he came in contact. It is said that sorrow and pain are wonderful refiners, and there can be no doubt that Mr. Sinclair's lifelong infirmity had given sweet- ness and patience to his whole character. His children were: Angeline Rowena, born Feb- ruary 4, 1847; Everett M .; Willis Webber; Trufant; Silas Trufant; Charles Trufant; and Jennie Webber.
Everett M. Sinclair received a common- school education, and in 1863 entered the em- ploy of the Androscoggin Mills at Lewiston, Me., as picker-boy. He worked afterward in Lisbon Falls, and in 1867 accepted a position in the Pondicherry Mills at Bridgton, Me. In 1872 he took charge of the weaving depart- ment of the Cocheco Woollen Mills at East
Rochester. Later he worked in Pennsylvania and at Worcester, Mass. ; but in 1884 the posi- tion of superintendent of the Cocheco Mills being vacant, he was asked by the corporation to return and accept that office. He was su- perintendent of the Cochceo Mills until 1894, when he was elected agent of the company. Mr. Sinclair's life has been one of close at- tention to business, and his success has been won, not by good luck, but by steadfastness of purpose and integrity combined with hard work. He is a self-made man, and has merited all the success he has won.
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