USA > New Hampshire > Belknap County > Biographical review : containing life sketches of leading citizens of Stafford and Belknap countries, New Hampshire > Part 36
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New Hampshire Volunteers, but was the first in the regimental list. His example was in- stantly followed by a number of his young associates, so strong was his influence among them. Nearly six feet in height, straight as one of the lofty pines of his own mountain forests, his magnificent physique. perfect in all its proportions, made him a fine soldier. Before starting for the seat of war, while the troops were being mustered at Concord, N. H., he assisted Captain Thomas E. Barker in drilling the raw recruits. Soon after his en- listment he was raised to the rank of Sergeant of his company. At the battle of Chancel- lorsville he was severely wounded by a bullet passing completely through his leg, just below the knee, which incapacitated him for further active service in the field, and from this time until the close of the war he was placed on the detached list of the recruiting service. At the close of the war he returned home, and resumed his old employment of blacksmithing and farming. The former business he gave up in 1882, and he has since applied his whole attention to farming, which he has found to be a most congenial pursuit.
He married Harriet S. Gilman, daughter of William R. and Judith (Edgerly) Gilman, of Gilmanton. William R. Gilman was the son of Joseph Gilman, who died November 26, 1839, aged sixty-seven years. Love D. Gil- man, the wife of Joseph Gilman, died June 3, 1856, aged eighty-two years. Mrs. Harriet Gilman Gale taught school in her native town for some years previous to her marriage. She is a member of the Congregational church of Gilmanton. Mr. and Mrs. Gale have had two children --- Cora Belle and Arthur Everett. Cora Belle, after graduating from Gilmanton Academy, like her mother, taught school in Gilmanton and adjoining towns. She was married June 20, 1888, to Frank C. Page, of
Gilmanton, the son of John S. Page, and has two children -- Hattie Belle Page and Harold Gale Page. Arthur Everett Gale died Sep- tember 25, 1875, when nine years of age.
In politics Mr. Gale is a Democrat. He is highly esteemed in the community where he resides, and he has twice served on the Board of Selectmen of the town. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity, also a member of the Grand Army of the Republic.
OSES S. GALE, an extensive farmer and prominent citizen of Gilmanton, N.H., was born in this town, May 10, 1815. His parents were Joseph and Sarah (Smith) Galc. His great- great-grandfather, Bartholomew Gale, who was a shipwright by trade, emigrated from England, and settled in the colony of Massa- chusetts Bay. He had several children, in cluding Jacob, Daniel, and others. [The names of his children with dates of birth are in the old records of Salem, Mass. ]
Jacob Gale, son of Bartholomew, and the next in the ancestral line now being con- sidered, resided in Kingston in Massachu- setts, and was elected for one term as a Rep- resentative to the General Court of the colony from that town. Daniel Gale, the son of Jacob, and the grandfather of Moses S., was born September 2, 1739. He removed to Gil- manton, N.H., in 1780, and died here in 1801. His wife, formerly Patience Eastman, who was born December 14, 1734, became the mother of the following children: Susan, Jacob, Joseph, Shuah, Daniel, Mary, Stephen, and Elizabeth.
Joseph Gale, the second son of Daniel and Patience (Eastman) Gale, and the father of the subject of this sketch, was born October 30, 1764. He was a blacksmith, and taught
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that craft to several of his numerous sons, Moses among the others. He was married to Smith on April 15, 1788, and they became the parents of the following children: Mary, Abraham, John, Patience, Daniel, Stephen, Dolly, Thomas, James, and Moses S. Of this family of ten, Moses is the only one now sur- viving.
Moses S. Gale, after acquiring his educa- tion in the district school, learned the black- smithing trade of his brother Abraham, but only followed it for a brief period. He soon turned all his attention to farming, a business which he has continued extensively and suc- cessfully to carry on up to the present time. He married Sarah Weeks, the daughter of Henry Weeks, of Alton, N.H. Four chil- dren, two sons and two daughters, were born to them. A brief record of the family is as follows: Joseph, died at the age of twenty- three years, unmarried; Henry and Laurenia died young; and Laurenia, second of the name, married George Eastman of Sanborn- ton, N.H., and has one child, named for his grandfather, Moses Gale.
Mr. Gale, the worthy descendant of a sturdy New England Puritan ancestry, is a man of a retiring, unostenatious disposition, assiduous in the faithful discharge of all the duties of life, and preferring the peaceful attractions of home and family to the uncertain and stormy joys of a public career. The Gale family for generations has been distinguished in the com- munity where their modest, useful lives have been spent by a certain genial kindliness of nature, which has rendered them exceedingly popular among their neighbors and associates. Mr. Moses S Gale is now one of the oldest citizens of Gilmanton, and has retired from active business life. He and his estimable wife are peacefully passing their declining days on their own farm, where they have spent
so many years in company, and together faced the varying vicissitudes of human existence, enjoying the respect and esteem of all who know them.
OEL F. SHERBURNE, a prosperous farmer of Barrington, was born in this town, August 24, 1834, son of Jacob and Marinda M. (Meserve) Sherburne. His paternal grandfather was Gideon Sherburne; and his great-grandfather, John Sherburne, came to this country from England, and was one of the earliest settlers of Barrington. Jacob and Marinda Sherburne had three chil- dren, two sons and a daughter; namely, Will- iam H., Joel F., and Sally A. Their only living child, Joel F. Sherburne, subject of this sketch, received a fair education, being first an attendant at the district school and later at Durham Academy. At the age of twenty he went to Tewksbury, Mass., and was an officer in the almshouse at that place for eight months. Returning home at the end of that time, he took charge of the home farm, on which he resided until 1883, when he came to his present place. He owns two farms, which together contain about two hundred acres, and he carries on mixed farming with profit.
Mr. Sherburne has twice married, his first wife being in maidenhood Miss Annie Young. She bore him four children, three sons and a daughter; namely, William H., Frank M., Flora E., and Leslie M., all of whom are liv- ing. In 188t he married for his second wife Miss Nora E. Richardson, of Barrington, by whom he has one child, Joel Ralph, now thir- teen years of age.
In political views Mr. Sherburne is a Re- publican. He has served on the School Board for eight years, was Town Collector in 1872, and Selectman in 1873 and 1874, being Chairman of the Board the latter year.
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ENRY SHEPARD, a respected citi- zen of Laconia, Belknap County, N.H., was born in Canaan, Grafton County, this State, June 16, 1834, son of John and Roxanna (Blodgett) Shepard. His paternal grandfather, Moses Shepard, was a native of Kingston, N.H., where he was a highly respected farmer. He married Abigail Swett, and they had seven children, namely : Moses; John; Mary; Nathaniel; Calvin; Abigail; and Luther, who died November 27, 1896, at Willisca, Ia. Moses Shepard died in East Bloomfield, N. Y. Mary married a Mr. Blake, and resided in Canaan until her death. Nathaniel was a farmer of Canaan. He died in Hanover, N.H. Calvin died at Belmont in 1889, Abigail married Mr. Blake, and died in Enfield, N.H.
age of seventy-one years, while his wife lived to be seventy-three years old.
Henry Shepard, the fourth child of his par- ents, received an excellent education. After attending the common schools he pursued courses of study in Canaan and Newbury Academies. Subsequently for eight years he was engaged in teaching. For fourteen years he was the trustworthy engineer of the Bel- knap Mills. For some years he was a nurse, and then he was appointed janitor of Laconia Academy, which position he has acceptably filled for ten years. In politics Mr. Shepard is a loyal Republican. He served as superin- tendent of schools in Enfield, N.H., for two years. He is a member of the following fraternal organizations: Mount Lebanon Lodge, No. 32, F. & A. M .; Union Chapter, No. 7, R. A. M .; Pythagorean Council, No. 6, Royal and Select Masters; and Pilgrim Commandery, K. T., all of Laconia.
John Shepard, the father of Henry, was born in Kingston, N. H., but subsequently re- moved to Canaan, where he was engaged as farmer and cattle drover for many years. He also dealt in sheep pelts. He served as Deputy Sheriff of Grafton County, and as Se- ELVIN E. BABB, who has for some time been the only undertaker in Barnstead and the immediate vicinity, and also is successfully engaged in farming and in the business of wagon and carriage making, was born in Strafford, No- vember 9, 1855, son of Sampson and Almira (Evans) Babb. lectman of Canaan. He and his wife, Rox- anna, had five children, of whom three sons are now living, as follows: Edwin, who is a farmer in Canaan; Henry, of Laconia; and Augustus, who resides in Lowell, Mass., and has a son and a daughter living in Canaan. The two that have passed away are Anna B. and John Sanford. Anna B. Shepard married His great-grandfather, Sampson Babb, came here from Barrington, N. H., settling in North Barnstead on the Strafford side, where he took up a one-hundred -acre tract of wild land covered with good timber. At first the grand- father built but a part of a house, putting it together with wooden pegs instead of nails. In the September gale of 1816 the roof was blown off, and he was obliged to take his oxen Dr. William P. Stone, of Danbury, N. H., and they have both since died. They left one son, Edward P., a chemist by profession. John Sanford Shepard died leaving three sons and two daughters. One of his sons is a drummer for a large wholesale firm in Boston, Mass. The other two sons are in the whole- sale grocery business in Franklin, N. H. The : daughters also, Roxie and Eliza, reside in ; and carry his family to the house of his brother Franklin. John Sanford Shepard died at the : William in Strafford. The frame of the pres-
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ent house was put up by him with lumber that he cut and hewed, and he shaved the shingles with which be covered it. He was a remark- ably well-preserved man, and he lived to be eighty-five years old. Both brothers bore a good reputation for honesty, industry, and tem- perate habits. Their trading was done in Portsmouth, thirty-five miles distant, the jour- ney being made on horseback over a road, or trail, indicated by spotted trees. Many of the tools they used in farming were rudely fash- ioned out of such material as they were able to secure. In the records of the family special mention is made of a harrow with wooden teeth that was made by Sampson Babb.
Sampson Babb married Susan Foss, who lived over ninety years, and who, to the last, was an unusually active woman. They had twelve children; namely, Benjamin, Ralph, Samuel, Joseph, Fannie, Eliza, Sarah, Debo- rah, Susan, Abigail, Louis, and Belinda. Fannie and Eliza died young ; Samuel resided all his lifetime in this neighborhood; Joseph died aged about twenty-six years; Sarah mar- ried Israel Foss, lived for some years in Maine, but finally returned to Barnstead, where she died; Deborah and Louis did not marry ; Susan married Peter Berry, and lived in Barnstead; Abigail successively married Joseph Holmes and David Goodwin; Belinda became the wife of John W. Holmes, of Straf- ford, N. H.
Ralph Babb remained on the homestead, which he received in return for caring for his parents, and on the condition that he would · also provide for his sister Deborah, who was an invalid. He became a prosperous farmer and stock raiser, was a charter member of the Free Baptist church of Strafford, and assisted in building the church edifice. He married Delilah Hayes, of Barrington, N. H., He died at the age of seventy-seven, and she was
eighty-four at her death. They had six chil- dren; . namely, Sampson H., Zekiel, Mercy, Delilah, Dyer, and Sarah. Zekiel removed to Barnstead Parade and afterward lived there. Mercy was twice married, first to John Nutter, with whom she lived in Gilmanton; and secondly to Thomas Berry, with whom she is now living in Barnstead. Delilah married Joseph Foss, and lived in Dover, N. H. She and her husband are now deceased, having left five children. Dyer, who was twice married, lives at Barnstead Parade; and Sarah is the wife of Oliver Evans, of Barnstead Parade.
Sampson H. Babb, born on the homestead, December 30, 1820, from an early age until he reached that of twenty assisted his father in the work of the farm. He then went to Straf- ford to learn the trade of a carpenter, serving an apprenticeship of two years. During the next seven years, he was employed in building houses and manufacturing sleighs, wagons, coffins, etc., in Barnstead. He next purchased a farm in Strafford; but five years later he returned to live with his parents, who were becoming feeble with age, and has resided here since. He kept up the coffin-making business, besides carrying on the farm, to which he has added, so that it now contains two hundred acres. In 1894 he relinquished the care of the farm to his son, and is now practically re- tired. In politics he is a Democrat; in re- ligion a Free Baptist. Almira, his wife, is a daughter of Lemuel Evans, a farmer. They have two sons - Melvin E. and Albert. The latter, a machinist by trade, is superintendent of a shoe shop in Pittsfield, N. H.
Melvin E. Babb, the elder of his parents' two sons, received a district school education. Then he learned with his father the trade of a carriage-maker and general carpenter, also those of undertaker and blacksmith. In all these callings he has proven his capability as
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a mechanic and business man. As previously stated, he is the only undertaker in this sec- tion, doing work not only here but in Strafford, Alton, and Farmington. In connection with this branch, he owns an expensive hearse and a pair of horses with harnesses, etc., com- plete. Since his father gave up active labor, he has carried on the homestead farm. He is a charter member of Crescent Lake Grange, and a member of the North Barnstead brass band.
J JOHN D. NUTTER, proprietor of a well patronized variety store in Barn- stead, was born here, March 30, 1848, son of William S. and Mary E. (Collins) Nutter. The father, also a native of Barn- stead, born in 1820, was engaged in farming from an early age, until he retired from active labor. Also, for several years, he spent the winter season in making boots and shoes. He had an interest in the Tuttle Mill, now run by Thomas F. Seward, which he sold in 1856, and later in the Collins Mill, which is located in the centre of the town. For the past six years he has been living in retirement. He served as a member of the Board of Selectmen six years, acting as Chairman a part of the time. In this office he won the hearty appro- bation of his fellow-townsmen by the able and conscientious manner in which he attended to his duties. He is unusually well informed upon all current topics, and his intelligence and worth are sincerely appreciated. In poli- tics he is a Democrat. His wife, Mary, was a daughter of John H. Collins, formerly a prominent mill-man in this town. She became by him the mother of five children; namely, John D., Charles C., James A., Frank S., and George W. Charles C., a painter by trade, and a resident of Concord, has served in both branches of the city government, and is now a
Representative to the legislature. James A. died May 31, 1891. Frank S., who resides at the homestead, has represented Barnstead in the legislature, and served as a Selectman for several years. He is married and has two children. George W. was graduated from the medical department of Dartmouth College, and began the practice of medicine in Man- chester, N. H. Subsequently, compelled by failing health to relinquish his practice, he removed to Salmon Falls, N.H., where he is now a well-known physician and druggist, and serves as Moderator at town meetings. While residing in Manchester, he was elected to the legislature as a Democrat. Mrs. William S. Nutter died January 2, 1892. A lady of superior intelligence and fine educational at- tainments, who was loved and respected by all who knew her, she exercised an influence over her children that is largely credited with their success in life.
John D. Nutter attended the common schools, and assisted in carrying on the farm until he was seventeen years old. He then went to the northern part of New York State, where he worked in a saw-mill for eighteen months. After returning home he was en- gaged in shoemaking. About three years ago he became the proprietor of a variety store, which he has since profitably conducted. In- cluded in his stock are wall paper, sporting goods, stationery, and patent medicines. He has been identified with local public affairs since 1886, when he was elected to fill a vacancy as Supervisor, and he was re-elected in the fol- lowing year. In 1888 he was elected a member of the Board of Selectmen. To accept this office he resigned that of Supervisor, and he declined a renomination in the following year. He was elected Town Clerk by a hand- some majority in 1892, and has since filled that office with ability. In 1893 and 1894 he
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received a unanimous vote, and his subsequent majorities have been large. He has been Superintendent of Police for several years, and as Clerk of the School District, a position which he has held since 1891, he has several times polled a unanimous vote.
Mr. Nutter has been twice married. For his first wife he wedded Grace Thurston. daughter of Benjamin Thurston, of Belmont. By this union he has had two children: Carle- ton J., who died aged six months ; and Roy L., who is now a blacksmith. His second marriage was contracted with Mrs. Sarah A. (Emerson) Pendergast, a daughter of George W. Emerson, who was formerly a well-known carpenter and cabinet-maker of this town. Mr. Emerson was for many years prominent in local affairs, having served as a Selectman, Town Clerk, Representative to the legislature, and Deputy Sheriff. Mrs. Nutter is a first cousin of Judge Lewis Clark. She taught school previous to her marriage with George E. Pendergast. Born of her first marriage were three children, of whom the only sur- vivor is residing in Minnesota. By her pres- ent husband she has one son, Ralph L. Mr. Nutter is overseer of Barnstead Grange, No. 119. In politics he supports the Democratic party.
EORGE H. CHESLEY, a machinist by trade, is now engaged in farming in his native town of Barrington, Strafford County, N.H. His parents were Lemuel and Mary (Merrill) Chesley. His father, who was a cooper, settled in Barring- ton about the year 1800; and here he resided during the remainder of his life, working at his trade. Je and his wife, Mary, had twelve children, namely: Sarah, born February 4, 1802; John, born October 21, 1803; Samuel, born March 19, 1805; William, born April 8,
1807; Moses, born March 11, 1809; Lucinda, born December 17, 1810; David and Andrew (twins), born December 6, 1814; Elizabeth, born July 15, 1816; Plummer, born September 10, 1818; Curtis P., born November 8, 1820; and George H., born December 15, 1822. Of these but two are living: George H., the sub- ject of the present sketch ; and Elizabeth.
George H. Chesley spent his early years in Barrington, and was educated in the common schools of this place. At the age of eighteen he began working at the machinist's trade, at which he served a three years' apprenticeship; and he subsequently worked for thirty years or more in Boston, New York, and other places. Returning to Barrington in 1870, he settled on his present farm, which contains about fifty acres.
In 1845 Mr. Chesley married Miss Irene F. Ham, who died in 1857, leaving two children : Evantia F., born May 13, 1849; and Leroy H., born February 9, 1855. Mr. Chesley and Miss Elizabeth J. Snell were married in Sep- tember, 1860. They have a daughter, Isabelle Blackburn Chesley, born March 10, 1877.
HRISTOPHER HENRY WELLS, whose third term as Mayor of Somers- worth, N. H., expired a few months since, in March, 1897, is widely known as the editor and proprietor of the Free Press and as one of the leading Republican politicians of Strafford County. He was born in this city, July 6, 1853, and comes of sturdy New Eng- land ancestry. His parents were Nathaniel and Eliza (Thom) Wells. The REVIEW gladly avails itself of the privilege of here reproduc- ing a sketch of his career written by the Hon. William D. Knapp : --
The Wells, or Welles, family in England is of very ancient origin, being clearly traceable
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back to the time of the Norman conquest. It is pretty well established that Thomas Wells, a physician, who came to Ipswich, Mass., in 1635, was the earliest emigrant of that name who settled in this country, though several families of Wells came over soon after. Sav- age, in his "Genealogical Dictionary of New England," states that Thomas Wells came to this country in 1635, on the "Susan and Ellen, " from London, with young Richard Saltonstall, when thirty years of age. Thomas was thus one of the earliest English inhabi- tants of Ipswich. He married Abigail, a daughter of William Warner and sister of Dan- iel and John Warner, all of them people of consideration among the first settlers .. In June, 1657, he went to Wells, Me., and pur- chased several hundred acres of land, but re- turned to Ipswich in a few years. On his death he left his land in Wells to his son John, and for more than a century that town remained the home of that line of the family.
Through Thomas Wells, the son of John, and Nathaniel, the son of Thomas, we come to Nathaniel Wells, born 1740, died 1816, who, during his long and useful life, was known as Judge Wells. He was one of the most distin- guished and valuable of the inhabitants of Wells at that time. In 1760 he was graduated from Harvard University, where he took high rank.
Bourne, in his "History of Wells and Ken- nebunk," says that Judge Wells was "distin- guished for strength of intellect, a tenacious memory, deep thought, and an uncommon power of argumentation." He filled many positions of trust, and his counsels were much relied on by his fellow-townsmen. He was a member of several important conventions dur- ing the Revolutionary times, and was a special justice of the inferior court of common pleas, Representative to the legislature, and a mem-
ber of the Senate. "In fine," says Bourne, "his services were sought for on all matters of public interest. He was the people's man, fitted for any station, and always ready for duty. His opinions carried with them great weight, and controlled the action of a majority of the people." He was a contemporary of the Rev. Moses Hemmenway, D. D., a gradu- ate of Harvard, an able preacher and writer, and one of the most eminent logicians in New England.
Judge Wells's son Nathaniel married Eunice, daughter of Dr. Hemmenway before alluded to, and settled at Deerfield, N. H., where he preached for more than a quarter of a century -- > some of his sermons being nowadays occasion- ally published as models of theological effort.
The father of the subject of this sketch was Nathaniel, the third child born to the Rev. Nathaniel and Eunice Wells; and his mother, whose maiden name was Eliza Thom, was a descendant of William Thom, who was born in 1706 in Scotland, removed to Londonderry, Ireland, and after a short residence in the north of Ireland was married to Elizabeth Wiar, of the same Scotch race. They emi- grated to America, and settled in Windham, N. H., in 1730.
Isaac Thom, their son, was the first regular physician in Windham of whom there is any record, and, as Parker's "History of London- derry " says, he became distinguished by the discovery and adoption of improved methods of practice in certain cases. He was a prominent and influential citizen of the town, and was a member of the Committee of Safety during the Revolution. In 1782 he removed to London- derry (now Derry), N. H. James, his son, the father of Eliza, was also an important man in this community. He was a graduate of Dart- mouth, and practised law for some years, and a part of the time edited a "Constitutionalist"
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newspaper. He held various important public offices. The mother of the late Hon. Charles H. Bell was a sister of this James Thom. Eliza's mother was Harriet Coffin, the daugh- ter of Dr. William Coffin, who before the War of the Revolution was a midshipman in the British navy. In 1775 he went to Paris, France, to complete his education in medicine, which was commenced in Boston, after which he returned to America, and when the Revolu- tion broke out he resigned his commission as midshipman in the British navy, and was ap- pointed a surgeon on the brig "Tyrannicide," a colony cruiser and public armed vessel of fourteen guns.
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