USA > New Hampshire > Belknap County > Biographical review : containing life sketches of leading citizens of Stafford and Belknap countries, New Hampshire > Part 6
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EORGE F. SANBORN, of Meredith, President of the Paris Night Robe Company, and an ex-member of the New Hampshire legislature, was born in this town, August 17, 1857, son of Dr. George and Sophronia (Stockbridge) Sanborn. His grandfather, Squire Samuel G. Sanborn, a prosperous farmer and a lifelong resident of Gilford, N. H., was prominent in the affairs of that town. Of his sons, George entered the medical profession; and W. A. Sanborn be- came widely and favorably known as captain of " Steamer Lady of the Lake."
George Sanborn, M. D., the father of George F., was born in Gilford, October 27, 1820. Having completed his early education at Franklin Academy, he pursued courses at Harvard and Dartmouth Colleges, graduating from the latter with the degree of Doctor of Medicine. After he had practised his profes- sion in Gilford and Sandwich for a time, he
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moved to Meredith, where he was a leading physician for thirty years. His practice, which extended over a circuit of fifteen miles, kept him constantly busy. Respected for his high character and ability, he was elected legislative Representative of Meredith for two terms. He also served with efficiency as Town Treasurer and superintendent of schools for a number of years. His wife, Sophronia B., was born in Alton, N. H., daughter of George Stockbridge His only child is George F., the subject of this sketch.
George F. Sanborn received his elementary education in the public schools. He subse- quently attended the New Hampton Institute and Tilton Seminary. After his studies were completed he engaged in the printing business, and established the Meredith News, a weekly paper, which he carried on for twelve years, and which was the first one printed in Mere- dith. In 1883, while still publishing the News, he entered the drug business, which he still follows, having a thriving trade in that line. In 1896 the Paris Night Robe Company was organized and incorporated, and he was elected its President. Under the able direc- tion of its official head the business of this concern is. developing rapidly. At present its output facilities are tested to their fullest capacity. Mr. Sanborn is also the Manager of the Meredith Electric Light Company, and is quite extensively interested in the coal trade. Common opinion represents him as one of the most progressive young business men of the town.
On December 10, 1885, Mr. Sanborn was united in marriage with Charlotte J. French, daughter of John B. French, of Meredith. He has one child, Royden W. In politics he has voted with the Democratic party since he came of age. He served as Moderator at town meet- ings for some years. In 1885 he was elected
a member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives, in which he served with ability for one term, and was appointed upon the Committee on Military Affairs. When the Board of Water Commissioners was estab- lished, he was elected . President of that body ; and he still serves in that capacity.
HARLES ESTES, a manufacturer of agricultural implements at Rochester, was born November 20, 1830, at North Berwick, Me., a son of John Estes. He comes of English ancestry, the emigrant ancestor having been Richard Estes, who settled in North Berwick at a very early period. Jedediah, son of Henry Estes, born in that town, was the grandfather of Charles. John Estes, who was a plough-maker by trade, had an iron foundry in Berwick for many years. In 1840 he transferred his residence and busi- ness interests to Rochester, N. H., remaining there until his death in 1889, at the venerable age of eighty-seven years. He was a man of enterprise and business ability and a valued member of the Republican party. A pillar of the Society of Friends, he was always inter- ested in its welfare, and contributed liberally to its support. In his estimation there was no religious creed comparable to that of the Friends. He married Abiah Green, of Straf- ford, and they reared four children; namely, Charles, Edwin T., Simon G., and Albert.
Charles Estes completed his education at the Friends' School in Providence, R. I., at the age of nineteen years. Returning then to Rochester, he worked with his father for two years, and was afterward for some years engaged in the foundry business in various places, including the cities of Dover, N. H., Lowell, Mass., Lawrence, Mass., the Charles- town and Portsmouth Navy Yards, New York,
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Fitchburg, Mass., and Woonsocket and Provi- dence, R.I. Going in 1864 to the Pacific Coast, he spent six months in Sacramento, Cal., and then for eight months was engaged in mining at Virginia City, Nev. He subse- quently made a short stay in Oakland, Cal., and the following year worked in the Montana mines, afterward travelling through the differ- ent States of the West for a time. In 1867 he returned to Rochester, took charge of his father's plant, and has since carried on a sub- stantial business as a manufacturer of agricult- ural implements of all kinds. Mr. Estes is a man of intelligence and capability, upright in his dealings and prompt in his support of whatever, in his opinion, is calculated to advance the welfare of the town and com- munity. He cast his first Presidential vote for John P. Hale, and since that time has been identified with the Republican party. For two years he served as Selectman in Roches- ter. He was also Surveyor for a time, and held other offices.
Mr. Estes was married in 1852 to Miss Mercy Varney, daughter of Israel H. and Sarah (Knowles) Varney, of Rochester. They have seven children, namely : Helen E., the wife of Joseph H. Clark; Charles E., of Providence, R.I. ; Florello, a physician, who is now in Switzerland; Almeda, who died at the age of sixteen ; Albert V., who died at the age of twenty-five; John F., of Hyde Park, Mass. ; and Adaline S., the wife of William Wright, an attorney-at-law, of Rochester. Mr. Estes and his family attend the religious meetings of the Friends, of Rochester.
OLONEL GEORGE W. STEVENS, at one time a prominent lawyer of Ia- conia, was born at Hill, N.H., No- vember 16, 1814, son of Eben Stevens, a
farmer of Hill. His mother, who came from Hampton, lived to the venerable age of ninety- five. The father continued his active life on the farm until a short time previous to his death. At one time he was a member of the State legislature. They had five children, of whom Hiram, the eldest, became a Baptist minister, and died at Meredith Village; Lo- renzo D. was a farmer of Franklin; Cutting, the third son, was Captain of a company in the Seminole War in Florida, and afterward settled in the West; George W. is the subject of this sketch; and Chase, who was connected with a Manchester woollen-mill, served as a non-commissioned officer of the Fourth New Hampshire Regiment during the late war.
The educational advantages of his day hav- ing been limited, the schooling of George W. Stevens was confined to the short winter term in the district schools of Hill. His father, absorbed in agriculture, wished his son to take up farming life; but the boy was of a studious temperament, and was resolved to ob- tain a higher education in spite of obstacles. He studied early and late, and by persistent application to his books he qualified himself to teach school. From this he became able to commence the study of law in the office of Judge Nesmith at Franklin. Upon his ad- mittance to the bar he bought the practice of Judge Warren Lovell, of Meredith, where he remained until he came to Laconia in 1855. Here he was associated with Jeremiah Elkins, under the firm name of Elkins & Stevens, and later with O. A. J. Vaughan. After one or two more changes he formed a copartnership with C. F. Stone, a relation which continued until his retirement from practice, June 17, 1873. He married Sarah A., daughter of Thomas Davenport, of Meredith, whose family was among the first settlers of the place. Of the four children born to them, three are liv-
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ing, namely: Georgianna, who married M. C. Boynton, a dry-goods merchant of Boston ; Ella, now Mrs. M. K. Harkness, of Salt Lake City, Utah; and George Edward, who was educated at Tilton Seminary, New London Academy, and New Hampton Academy, is now married, resides in Laconia, and is the Superintendent of the Winthrop Hosiery Mills.
Colonel Stevens died October 2, 1877, two years after his wife, whose death occurred No- vember 10, 1875. They were both active workers during the Civil War. The forming of the Twelfth New Hampshire Regiment was largely due to his untiring efforts; and Mrs. Stevens was prominent as President of the Soldiers' Aid Society, which did so much for the comfort of our brave soldiers. Colonel Stevens was President of the Belknap County Bar Association for some time previous to his death. He was one of the founders of the Unitarian Society in Laconia, and of those who took an active part in the erection of the church. A Democrat in politics, he repre- sented Laconia for a time in the legislature. Colonel Stevens was a man of the strongest individuality. A brother lawyer, long asso- ciated with him, gives the following word por- trait of the Colonel : -
"As a lawyer and a neighbor I have known him since 1859. He was a magnificent-look- ing man at his best, tall, heavy, with a Web- sterian head and a high, massive forehead. He possessed a flexible, agreeable voice, and was a profound thinker, being recognized as one of the ablest thinkers of his day through- out the State. No man was more impressive as an advocate or before an audience. Seen in the court-room at his leisure, he was disap. pointing, and in his ordinary work he did not excel; but with the eccentricity of genius, once aroused and interested in the cause he championed, he would descend like an ava-
lanche upon his unlucky opponents, and in a whirlwind of eloquence carry everything before him. Erratic, he would maintain a position with zeal in trying a case, which he would suddenly abandon; and he was quite likely to do his most brilliant work on cases involv- ing the smallest sums, while the most impor- tant causes would be treated with inattention. Like most men of genius, he possessed whims. He always read the dissenting opinions of the court, feeling that they had something of worth. He was a bold free-thinker, and read such authors as Buckle, Lecky, Herbert Spen- cer, and John Stuart Mill, grasping their thoughts with a mental power that carried him oftentimes far beyond the conceptions of these weighty minds. Colonel Stevens was at his best in his thirties, maturing early in life. He was public-spirited, and labored always for the interests of the town. He wanted good churches, good hotels, good roads, develop- ment of water-power, and worked hard to attain these ends. He had no quarrel with any creed. He was familiar with the Bible and the commentaries thereon, and revelled in log- ical fields. He was a man of the most upright moral character and a kind husband, though home interests meant less to him than to many. His heart was in his efforts for the good of town, State, and country; and in the death of this original and brilliant man New Hampshire lost one of whom she may be justly proud."
RANK HOLT, a retired hosiery manu- facturer of Lakeport, Belknap County, N. H., was born in Leicester, Leices- tershire, England, in 1827, son of William and Sarah (Hospool) Holt. William Holt was a native of the same English town, where he was engaged in dyeing and cleansing hosiery. He died in his native land through
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overwork, at the age of forty-nine years, leav- ing four children.
Frank Holt, who was the third child of his parents, acquired a good education in England, and also learned the manufacture of hosiery. He came to America in 1853, at first locating in Philadelphia, where he worked about a year and eight months in the factories of Wiah Cox and Edward Wade. He then went to Frank- lin, N. H., where he was employed as over- seer in Thomas Appleton's mill until it was destroyed by fire in 1856. The following year he came to Lake Village, now Lakeport, finding work in another mill owned by Mr. Appleton. In 1877 he began manufacturing for himself, and three years later became asso- ciated with Mr. John Lee in the proprietorship of the Bayside Mill, the firm conducting business under the style of Frank Holt & Co. This partnership lasted until 1892, when Mr. Holt disposed of his interest and retired from business.
In 1848 Mr. Holt married Anna, daughter of John and Mary (Waters) Iliffe, of Inkley, Leicestershire, England. Three children are the result of their union - Mary, Sarah, and William. The two daughters still reside at home with their father; while William is a resident of Meriden, Conn. Mrs. Holt died in July, 1888. In politics Mr. Holt is a Re- publican. He is a member of Chocorua Lodge, No. 51, I. O. O. F., of Lakeport; and he at- tends the Free Baptist church. He has been successful in acquiring a competence, and is enjoying his well-earned retirement.
HARLES E. MANSON, a well- known and respected citizen of East Rochester, was born December 20, 1828, in Great Falls, this State, a son of John and Caroline (Lord) Manson. His paternal
grandfather, John Manson (first), who spent his early life in Limington, York County, Me., subsequently removed to Eaton, Wash- ington County, Me., where he made his per- manent home until his death. Nathaniel Manson, a seafaring man, and one of the first John's brothers, in the War of 1812 was taken on board a privateer, conveyed to England, and confined in Dartmoor Prison for some time.
John Manson, the father of Charles E., came to Rochester in 1834, and was engaged in the business of carpenter, contractor, and builder in this vicinity until his demise in 1869. A man of much force of character and quite in- fluential in local politics, he was one of the six men who bolted from the Whig party and formed the Free Soil party. He married Miss Caroline Lord, daughter of Benjamin Lord, of Berwick, Me. They became the parents of four children, as follows: Charles E., the sub- ject of this sketch; Sabrina, who died at Great Falls in infancy; John, whose death occurred at Port Chester, N. Y., at the age of forty-four years; and Frank C., of Saxonville, Mass.
Charles E. Manson received his preliminary education in the district schools of Rochester, afterward continuing his studies at the Roch- ester Academy until sixteen years old. He then learned the carpenter's trade from his father, with whom he worked for five years. In 1851 Mr. Manson entered the factory of Messrs. Hall and Springfield at East Roches- ter, where he had charge of the repairs and the weaving department until the burning of the mill in 1857. Going then with Mr. Spring- field to Wolfboro, N. H., he was employed by him in the same capacity until 1879. In that year Mr. Manson accepted the position of superintendent of the Cocheco Woollen Mill at East Rochester. Next year he became agent for the Cocheco Woollen Manufacturing Com-
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pany, an important office, which he faithfully filled for fifteen years. He practically retired from active business then, although he has since been connected with the firm of Tibbetts & Hayes, lumber dealers of East Rochester. Mr. Manson cast his first Presidential vote in 1852 for General Scott, and since that time he has been a steadfast supporter of the Republi- can party. In 1885 and 1886 he served as a Representative to the General Court of New Hampshire. He belongs to Cocheco Lodge, I. O. O. F., of East Rochester; to Hu- mane Lodge, F. & A. M., of Rochester; to Temple Chapter, R. A. M., Rochester, of which he is a chaster member; to the Orphan Council of Dover; and to Palestine Command- ery, K. T., Rochester, of which he is also a charter member. Mr. Manson contributes lib- erally toward the support of the Methodist Episcopal Church of East Rochester, which he usually attends.
In 1849 Mr. Manson married Eliza A. Jel- lerson, of Rochester. The fruit of this union was one child, George E., born August 31, 1854. He contracted a second marriage Jan- uary 29, 1856, with Mary A. Foss, daughter of Benjamin and Patience (Horne) Foss, of Rochester. By this union he became the father of two children, namely: Mary Carrie, born June 5, 1859; and Annabell, born Sep- tember 17, 1862, who died September 18, 1864.
TON. JOHN W. BUSIEL, for many years a well-known woollen manu- facturer of Laconia, N. H., was born at Moultonboro, N. H., March 28, 1815. His parents were Moses F. and Relief Busiel, and he was the eldest of a family of seven sons and one daughter. Five of his brothers are now living, namely: Albert H., Lewis F., and William M. Busiel, of Laconia; Harrison M.
Busiel, of East Andover, N. H. ; and George H. Busiel, of Providence, R.I.
Mr. Busiel's education was obtained in the common schools at a period when country boys seldom attended school more than one term of eight weeks during the year. Eager for knowledge from the first, he made the most of his limited opportunities. He was quick to learn; and what he learned he learned thor- oughly, thus building a solid foundation for the acquirements of after years. In his early youth he decided to be a woollen manufact- urer; and he started out at the age of twelve years, with his scanty wardrobe tied up in a handkerchief, to walk to Loudon, N.H., where he entered the mill of his great-uncle, Lewis Flanders, who carded rolls and made flannels and cloths used in that period. A boy of ex- ceptional energy and determination, he re- mained with his uncle until he was nineteen years old, seizing every opportunity to learn the business, and at the same time proceeding methodically with his studies, while the other boys were at play. At nineteen years of age, with a new suit of clothes and one hundred dollars in his pocket, young Busicl left his uncle's roof and went to Amesbury, Mass., where he was employed in a woollen-mill, and completed his trade. Many times during his stay in Amesbury he walked home, and out of his scanty earnings assisted in maintaining the family.
After completing his period of service in Amesbury, he returned to New Hampshire, and in a small mill in Meredith, N. H., began business for himself. This he carried on for the next ten years, carding woollen-rolls for hand spinning, and finishing the cloths which it was then the custom for the farmers' wives to weave. He also began there the manu- facture of satinet cloth and knitting yarn. In 1846 he took the old Bean Mill at Laconia,
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and here continued to produce these articles. This mill was later called the Morrison Mill, and upon its site now stands the dyehouse of the firmn of J. W. Busiel & Co. During the great fire of the Strafford Mill this old one- story wooden structure was partially burned, and in 1853 Mr. Busiel purchased the land and water-power formerly used by the Strafford Company. On this site he erected the first of the buildings now used by J. W. Busiel & Co. He here added to his list the manufacture of Saxony and Germantown yarns. Mr. Busiel received a gold medal at the Crystal Palace Exhibition in London, for the best mixture of cotton and wool yarn. The invention of the circular ribbed knitting machine by Jonas and Walter Aiken in 1856 led Mr. Busiel to in- troduce the manufacture of Shaker socks and underwear. At the beginning of the Civil War the production of army socks became an industry in which Mr. Busiel engaged; and after the war the manufacture of different vari - eties of hosiery became the sole product of the mill carried on by Mr. Busiel until the time of his death, which occurred July 26, 1872.
On December 23, 1841, he married Julia M., daughter of Stephen and Julia Tilton, of Meredith. Of this union were born three sons and one daughter. The daughter died in infancy. The sons have lived to be an honor to their father's name. The eldest is Charles A. Busiel, ex-Governor of New Hampshire. The other sons, John T. and Frank E., now carry on the business founded by their father ; and all three live in Laconia. The house in which Mrs. Busiel now resides was built by Mr. Busiel five years previous to his decease.
He was a strong Democrat in politics, and represented Laconia in the State legislature in the years 1870-71. Mr. Busiel manufactured the first gas burned in Laconia, and laid the first slate used here for roofing purposes. He
also put in the first boiler and steam heat in Laconia. He took a great interest in the wel- fare of the town, and always gave generously to public buildings and for the promotion of all plans for town improvement. He was a Trustee of the Belknap Savings Bank. He attended the Congregational church, of which Mrs. Busiel is a member, and contributed lib- erally to its support.
This public-spirited man was of a kind- hearted, generous nature, benevolent and un- selfishly devoted to the interests of his town. His rugged honesty, his strong antipathy to sham and false pretence, his fair and generous dealings with his employees, and his ever- ready help to the poor and unfortunate are well known to the townspeople of his genera- tion. He was emphatically a self-made man. From nothing he rose to a comfortable inde- pendence in this world's goods; and in his early, sudden death the community lost a man whom it had learned to love and to respect. His mortal remains were buried in the beau- tiful Union Cemetery in Laconia.
RANK E. BUSIEL, a well-known woollen manufacturer of Laconia, Bel- knap County, N.H., was born in this town, October 31, 1852, son of John W. and Julia (Tilton) Busiel. His father was a native of Moultonboro, and his mother of Meredith. They had four children: Charles A .; John T .; Frank E., the subject of this sketch; and one daughter, Julia M., who died at the age of eight months. John W. Busiel was a prominent woollen manufacturer, and was the first in Laconia to make use of a steam boiler.
Frank E. Busiel was educated in the schools of his native town and at Gilford Academy. - He then entered his father's factory to thor-
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oughly familiarize himself with the business. He worked three years as second hand, and proved so efficient that he was placed in charge of the knitting department, which position he filled until his father's death in 1872. He was then admitted to partnership, the business being carried on under the style of J. W. Busiel & Co. In politics Mr. Busiel is a Re- publican. While too much absorbed in busi- ness to give much attention to politics, he has served as Chairman of the Police Commission, to which position he was appointed in April, 1895.
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On November 19, 1874, Mr. Busiel was united in marriage with Hattie A. Sanborn, of Haverhill, Mass. He has two children, the elder of whom, Grace, is now attending Brad- ford Seminary in Massachusetts.
TON. WILLIAM F. NASON, Mayor of the city of Dover, N. H., was born in Sanford, York County, Me., on the twenty-second day of November, 1857. He is the son of Joseph T. and Susan Frost Nason. His paternal grandfather, Daniel Nason, who was born in the town of Kenne- bunkport, Me., and lived there for a goodly portion of his earthly years, was a substantial citizen, possessing ability and property, and was engaged in ship-building and in the foreign trade. His father, Joseph T. Nason, as a young man was interested in educational matters. He spent three years as a student in Bowdoin College, and then served as principal of several of the leading schools in the State. Later in life he was engaged in navigation, and was master of vessels in the foreign trade. Mr. Joseph T. Nason died at Kennebunk, Me., in the month of January, 1884, his wife surviving till December, 1893. They were respected members of the community, commu-
nicants of the Congregational church, and ex- amples of probity.
William F. Nason attended school in the towns of South Berwick and Kennebunk; and after completing a high-school course in the latter place he entered a law office, where he remained for two years in the study of law. He then went to Wolfboro, N.H., and read law with the Hon. Buel C. Carter. Being admitted to the bar in 1879, he came to Dover, his present home, and formed a law partnership with Mr. Carter, where he has since given his time to the practice of his profession.
Although ever a stanch advocate of the principles of true Republicanism, and fre- quently selected to represent his party in posi- tions of trust and responsibility, it cannot be urged that Mr. Nason has courted political honors. Strong and loyal in his friendships, quick to comprehend, and fearless in his con- victions, tenacious of purpose, yet eminently fair and considerate in his judgments, he has won the universal respect of his fellow-citi- zens, and is held in the highest esteem, even by those who have found in him a professional or political adversary.
He was chosen Solicitor of his adopted city in 1883, and again in 1884, serving in all seven years in that capacity. As a member of the New Hampshire legislature in 1887 and 1888, he took a prominent part in all the im- portant measures of that session, winning rec- ognition as one of the most forceful speakers and ready debaters on the floor of the House. During his legislative term he served on the Judiciary Committee, and was also Chairman of the Committee on Elections. In 1892 he was prevailed upon to allow his name to be presented before the County Convention as a candidate for County Solicitor; and in the "battle of the ballots " his popularity through-
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