USA > New Hampshire > Belknap County > Biographical review : containing life sketches of leading citizens of Stafford and Belknap countries, New Hampshire > Part 9
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maiden name was Harriet Hill, died a few years after their marriage, leaving three chil- dren. These were: Horatio H., of Barnstead; Amasa W., the subject of this brief sketch; and Lydia A., the wife of Charles H. Dow. His second wife, Roxa A. (Nute) Shackford, left no children at her death. He subse- quently contracted a third marriage with Mrs. Pamelia Brown, of Barnstead.
Amasa W. Shackford received his education at Pittsfield and at the New London Literary Institute. He went soon after to Concord to learn photography, for a while being employed in the studio of Benjamin Carr. Having acquired a good knowledge of the business, he purchased and fitted up a photographer's cart, with which he travelled for about six years. In 1866, or thereabouts, Mr. Shackford opened a gallery in Farmington, and has since con- tinued in his chosen occupation in this town. For a score of years he taught school in Farm- ington, Barnstead, Northwood, and Gilmanton, including classes in penmanship in the public schools. In 1884 he built the large block on Central Street in which his studio has since been located, his large and constantly increas- ing patronage having demanded more commo- dious quarters. An artist of wide experience, and doing work that compares favorably with that of the leading photographers of the county, he has a large and constantly increas- ing patronage. He is now assisted by his son, to whom he has relegated the larger part of the responsible work of the establishment. In politics he acts with the Democratic party. He served his fellow-townsmen in the capacity of Town Clerk for five years and that of mem- ber of the School Board for three years. He was made a Mason in Fraternal Lodge; is a member of Woodbine Lodge, I. O. O. F. ; and belongs to the Henry Wilson Colony of Pil- grim Fathers of Farmington.
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Mr. Shackford married Miss Clara A. Lougee, of Barnstead, a daughter of Simeon and Mary (Tibbetts) Lougee. Mr. and Mrs. Shackford have but one child, John S., who has largely succeeded to the business of his father. John S. Shackford completed the course of study at the Farmington High School, and was subsequently graduated from the Scientific and Literary Institute at New Hampton, N. H. He is a man of good mental attainments, is gifted by nature with artistic ability, and he has inherited his father's skill in penmanship. Mr. Amasa W. Shackford and his family are regular attendants of the Free Will Baptist church, and contribute their full share toward its maintenance.
EORGE L. HALL, a farmer of Barn- stead, N. H., was born March 7, 1845. His parents were George and Sally (Drew) Hall. His paternal grandfather, Sol- omon Hall, and his grandfather's brother, Joseph Hall, were carly settlers in Barnstead, coming here from Strafford. They bought a tract of land, and are said to have cleared most of it before building, the greater part of it being wood land. . Solomon Hall married Lydia Scruton, of Strafford, who was born Oc- tober 12, 1771, and died August 17, 1845. He died October 24, 1852, at the age of eighty-four years. They had twelve children, as follows: Ephraim; Joseph; Mary; Deb- orah; Lydia; Daniel; Solomon, Jr. ; Will- iam; George, father of the subject of this sketch; Hannah; Stacy; and Alfred. Of these children, Daniel and Solomon, Jr., died respectively April 1 and 3, 1819.
George, the sixth son, as above named, lived at home with his parents, and was given the farm. He married Sally Drew, daughter of John Drew, whose father was one of the first
settlers near Crescent Lake in Alton, N. HI. George Hall was a Deacon of the Free Will Baptist church for a number of years. He lived to the age of seventy-four, and his wife was seventy-seven years old at the time of her death. They had three children, namely : George L., subject of this sketch; Lydia Charlotte; and John Frank. Lydia Charlotte married Samuel Chapman, of East Dennis, Mass. John Frank has been a successful grocer in Farmington, N. H., for the past twenty years. He has held many local offices of trust, has represented his town in the Lower House of the State legislature, and also has served as a member of the Senate. A sketch of him appears elsewhere in this volume.
George L. Hall, the elder of the two brothers, having acquired his education in district and private schools of the town, en- gaged in general farming, and at the death of his father inherited the homestead. Since that time he has been very prosperous, and has added considerable to the improvements of the farm, replacing the old buildings by new and commodious ones. He is very popular, and has been Selectman of the town for four years, in politics always voting with the Democrats.
On May 13, 1883, he married Mary E. Holmes, daughter of John F. Holmes, a prom- inent citizen of Barnstead. For four years before her marriage Mrs. Hall taught school in different places, having fitted herself for the work by attending Pittsfield Academy sev- eral terms. She has been a member of the Free Will Baptist church for twenty years. Mr. and Mrs. Hall have two children -- George F. and Mildred E. Mr. Hall is a conscientious, faithful citizen, active in all the interests of the town, and is one who has the confidence of the community.
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JAMES F. SEAVEY.
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AMES FRANK SEAVEY, one of the representative men of Strafford County, New Hampshire, occupies a position of prominence in the financial, political, and social circles of Dover, of which he is a resi- dent, and is likewise connected with many of the leading enterprises of neighboring towns and cities. He was born August 14, 1838, in Rochester, this county, a son of Samuel F. Seavey, and a grandson of Samuel Seavey, one of the Rochester farmers who served in the War of 1812. His grandfather Ham was also a soldier in that war.
Samuel F. Seavey was born in Rochester, where he was engaged in agricultural pursuits during his years of activity. He was quite successful in his labors; and before his death, which occurred when he was seventy-two years of age, he had accumulated a considerable property. In politics he was a stanch Demo- crat, and took an active part in local affairs. In his daily walk in life he was guided by the Christian principles, and both he and his wife were valued members of the Free Baptist church. He married Eliza K. Ham, who was like himself a lifelong resident of Rochester, N. H. She survived him some time, passing away at the good old age of seventy-nine years. They reared a family of seven chil- dren, as follows: James Frank, the special subject of this biography; Mary J .; Elizabeth A .; Albert F., a sketch of whose life will be found on another page of this volume; Joseph W .; Charles, who died in infancy: and Charles H., residing in Rochester, who is connected with his brothers, James F. and Albert F., in the lumbering business, their plant being located in Dover.
James Frank Seavey spent his early years on the home farm, attending first the public schools and afterward the private school of Miss Caroline Knight, of Rochester, complet-
ing his education at the Franklin Academy of Dover. At the age of nineteen years he left the parental roof to enter upon a business career, spending the next eight years as a clerk in a dry-goods and grocery store in this city. Having become familiar with the details of the business in which he had been so long employed, Mr. Seavey, forming a partnership with his brother, Albert F., under the firm name of J. Frank Seavey & Co., established a clothing house, which is now managed by the junior partner. Capable of multitudinous cares, he has found time, either as personal director or projector, to enter into various other enterprises of a financial nature, being one of the Directors of the E. H. Rollins & Sons' corporation; a member of the well- known firm of Charles H. Seavey & Co., man- ufacturing lumber dealers; a Director of the B. F. Haley Company, wholesale clothing house, of New Market, N.H. ; a member of the Dover Navigation Company; a Director of the Dover Improvement Association; Presi- dent and Director of the Dover Co-operative Savings Fund and Loan Association ; and pro- prietor of a large livery and hack stable.
In public affairs Mr. Seavey has been very active, having served with credit to himself and honor to his constituents in various im- portant offices. In 1867 he was elected a member of the Common Council of Dover, in which he served two years; for two years he was Selectman of his ward; for the same length of time Ward Clerk; from 1869 until 1872 County Treasurer of Strafford County; in 1878 and for three years thereafter a mem- ber of the legislature; and in 1881 was chosen as a member of the New Hampshire Senate, in 1883 being honored with a re-election, a distinction as rare as it was merited. In secret society circles Mr. Seavey is likewise prominent. He has taken a high rank in
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Masonry, being a Knight Templar; in the Knights of Pythias he was Grand Chancellor in 1876, and in 1878 and 1879 was Supreme Representative; he has passed all of the chairs of Wechohamet Lodge, I. O. O. F., of Dover; and he also belongs to the encampment.
Mr. James Frank Seavey married April 20, 1863, Miss Sarah F., daughter of Daniel K. and Hannah (Ham) Webster, of Dover. They have two children, namely: Grace W., the wife of Montgomery Rollins, of Boston; and Walter H., who married Mabel Foster, and is associated with E. H. Rollins & Sons in the banking business in Toledo, Ohio. Mrs. Seavey is a member of the Methodist Episco- pal church, of which Mr. Seavey is a regular attendant, and toward the support of which he is a generous contributor.
DWARD E. EVANS, a leading farmer of Rochester, was born August 13, 1839, in the house he now occupies, and in which his father, William Evans, was born in 1799. He belongs to the fourth gen- eration of the Evans family. His great- grandfather, Benjamin Evans, who came here from Madbury in Colonial days, purchased the land while it was yet in a wild state, and there cleared and improved a farm. This property he afterward left to his son, Hanson Evans, the next in line of descent.
William Evans spent his life on the home- stead, and was one of the foremost farmers of his time. Having been a well-read man, of broad views and good judgment, he took a leading part in affairs. He supported the Re publican party, and for two terms was a Rep- resentative to the General Court. His death occurred on the home farm in 1877, when he was seventy-eight years old. His wife, whose maiden name was Hannah Shannon, bore him
ten children, six of whom are living. These are: Thomas, of Rochester; Edward E., the subject of this article; Charles W., of New Durham; John J., who resides in Rochester; Mary F., the wife of Daniel Hussey, of this town; and Susan M., the widow of John Brock, late of Rochester.
Edward E. Evans completed his education at the high school of Sandwich Centre. He afterward assisted his father on the farm, ac- quiring thereby a practical knowledge of agri- culture. He subsequently secured a position in Wallace's shoe factory at Rochester, where he remained three years. In 1871 he returned to the old homestead, which has since been under his management. It is located on the Strafford road, about three and a half miles from Rochester, and contains sixty acres of land, affording excellent pasture for his cattle, and well adapted for raising crops. He has been very successful in raising small grain. In 1893 he sent an exhibit of oats, wheat, and rye to the Columbian Exposition in Chicago, where he took first prize for oats and rye. In politics he is a stanch Republican. He has persistently refused nomination for the legis- lature, public life having no attractions for him. He did, however, serve as Selectman in 1885, 1889, and 1891, and is at present filling a term of three years as Selectman of Ward Three. He is a member of the Crown Point Grange of Strafford, and he and his family attend the Crown Point Baptist Church of that place.
Mr. Evans's first wife, in maidenhood Abby Vickery, of Rochester, died in 1872. She left one child, George E., who, after graduat- ing from the Rochester High School, received a medical education at the New York Homco- pathic College, and is now a physician in Branford, Conn.
On December 28, 1876, he married Miss
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Jennie Clark, also of Rochester, and they have two sons, namely: Joseph H., born April II, 1878, who graduated from the Rochester High School in June, 1897; and E. Roscoe, born December 30, 1880, now attending the high school.
EORGE H. AND JOSEPH S. CLARK, who, under the firm name of George H. Clark & Co., carry on a large lumber business in Meredith, are the sons of Jonathan and Elsie (Sturtevant) Morse Clark. Jonathan Clark, a native of Beverly, Mass., having learned the carpenter's trade, moved in 1824 to Centre Harbor, N. H., and engaged in business upon his own account. In 1834 he removed to Moultonboro, N.H., where he followed his trade as a master builder for the rest of his life, and died in April, 1868. In politics he was originally a Whig and later a Republican. He married Mrs. Elsie (Sturte- vant) Morse, daughter of Joseph Sturtevant, of Centre Harbor. She became the mother of four children, namely: Elizabeth, who married Reuben Clough, of Warner, N.H .; Emeline A., now the wife of Samuel Lull, of the same town; and George H. and Joseph S., the sub- jects of this sketch. She died in 1847. Both Mr. and Mrs. Jonathan Clark were members of the Congregational church.
George II. Clark, who was born in Centre Harbor, February 13, 1833, acquired a dis- trict-school education, and then learned the carpenter's trade with his father. He was afterward employed for five years in a piano factory. At the end of that period he and his brother engaged in the manufacture of lumber in Meredith. In politics he is a Republican. He belongs to Chocorua Lodge of Masons and to the Masonic Chapter in Laconia. In 1860 George H. Clark was united in marriage with Mary A. Tilton, daughter of Joseph Tilton, of
Meredith Centre. He attends the Congrega- tional church.
Joseph S. Clark was born in Moultonboro, August 30, 1838. After completing his stud- ies in the district schools he served an appren- ticeship with his father, and afterward fol- lowed the carpenter's trade for a time. At the age of twenty he became a partner in the firm of George H. Clark & Co. The firm are extensive manufacturers and dealers in all kinds of lumber, and their annual output reaches large figures. In 1866 Joseph S. Clark married Eliza J. Wiggin, daughter of Washington Wiggin, of Meredith. Mrs. Clark is now the mother of two children - Joseph and Mary. In politics Mr. Clark is a Republican.
ORRISON BENNETT, a farmer by occupation, is an influential citi- zen of Alton, Belknap County,
N. H. A son of Benjamin, Jr., and Lydia (Morrison) Bennett, he was born June 7, 1822, in the house he now occupies, a substantial frame dwelling built by his paternal grand- father in 1774.
Benjamin Bennett, Sr., was one of the car- liest settlers of Alton, coming here from Dur- ham. He had previously worked out for a few years in New Durham. In Alton he pur- chased a one-hundred-and-fifty-acre tract of wild land, on which he felled the first trees. The Bennett house is probably the first frame dwelling built in Alton, and in the early days town meetings were frequently held here. Grandfather Bennett lived to be eighty-two years of age, and was twice married. His first wife, from whom he was soon called to part by death, was Betsey March, daughter of Squire Paul March, a well-to-do farmer; and his sec- ond was Mrs. Elizabeth Gage Bell, daughter of Captain Gage, of Dover, N. H. By the first
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union there was a daughter, Betsey, who mar- ried Samuel Willey, of New Durham; and by the second, there were two sons and three daughters, namely: Sarah, who married Jona- than Buzzell; Nancy, who married Squire David Willey; Hannah, who married John Runnals; Gage, who went away when quite young, and was unheard from; and Benjamin, Jr. Their mother was first married to Colonel Frederick Bell, of Great Island, N.H., who was killed in the Revolutionary War.
Benjamin Bennett, Jr., passed his life on the homestead, dying here September 7, 1870, aged seventy-nine years. His wife, Lydia, survives him. She is a daughter of David Morrison, who fought in the Revolution under General John Stark, going into the war when eighteen years old, and serving three years. David Morrison, born in 1763, was of the third generation in descent from Samuel Mor- rison, one of the early settlers of Londonderry, N. H. Benjamin and Lydia (Morrison) Ben- nett had six children - Morrison, Albert, John, Eveline, David, and a child that died in infancy. David Bennett died when two and one-half years old; Albert, now deceased, re- sided in Wolfboro; John, who emigrated to New York State, and served in the Civil War, in the Seventh Independent New York Bat- tery, died in 1866; Eveline married Jeremiah York, of Dover, N.H.
Morrison Bennett in his youth attended pri- vate schools and Strafford Academy a few terms; and then he taught seventeen terms of school winters, and did farm work summers. Finally he took up farming exclusively, and upon his father's death purchased the home- stead, which he still owns. Besides attending to his personal affairs, Mr. Bennett has for twenty years served as a Selectman of Alton, has been Town Treasurer, and for two years he represented Alton in the State legislature,
being for many years past one of the leading politicians of the town.
Mr. Bennett was married on July 17, 1852, to Miss Christiana E. Berry, of Strafford, one of his pupils. They have had nine children ; namely, Ina B., Abbie J., Hezekiah H., John M., Charles A., Nettie E., Fred S., Lillian C., and Ira B. Abbie and Nettie died in childhood; Ina B. is the wife of Frank E. Mooney; Ira B. married Lulu V. Flint, and has one child that is the fifth generation of the family to reside on this place, and the fourth now living here, as the mother of Mr. Morrison Bennett makes her home with him.
Mrs. Lydia Morrison Bennett is the oldest person residing in Alton, being ninety-seven years of age. Despite her years, she is re- markably well preserved, with memory and other faculties clear, but somewhat troubled with rheumatism and a slight deafness. The following interesting notice of her appeared in the Boston Globe, July 18, 1896: -
"Mrs. Bennett has fifteen grandchildren, ten great-grandchildren, and two great-great- grandchildren living. The house in which she now lives was built in 1774 by her hus- band's father; and in its front room to-day stands an old-fashioned tall clock which her husband bought at an auction before their mar- riage, and which has ticked steadily in this same house through all the vicissitudes of the family for seventy-four years. This clock is known to be one hundred and fifty years old. It still keeps the best of time, and its owner is very proud of it.
"One remarkable thing about Mrs. Bennett is the fact that she was the daughter of a sol- dier, the wife of a soldier, and the mother of a ' soldier. Her father served in the Continental army in the Revolutionary War seven years; her husband served in the War of 1812, by reason of which she is now a pensioner; and a
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son, John, served in the Rebellion, dying soon after his return home from the effects of disa- bilities contracted in the service.
" Mrs. Bennett was born less than four years after the incorporation of the town of Alton, the centennial anniversary of which was cele- brated June 16, 1896; and her stories of the early days of the town are very interesting. During her married life she has spun wool and linen, and she wove all the cloth necessary for use in her family for clothing and all other purposes. Travelling was all on horseback in her early days; and she used frequently to take a bridle in her hand, and go to the past- ure and catch the horse and start away. In speaking of the difference of the amount of labor performed by the women of to-day and those of her time, she remarked with disdain that the women nowadays, who only had their housework to do, wanted a maid to do that for them.
"Mrs. Bennett knits, sews, and reads, with- out the aid of spectacles; and when the corre- spondent visited her she was engaged in taking up stitches preparatory to knitting a stocking. A year ago she finished a quilt of patchwork containing one thousand and seventy-one pieces; and last winter she knit a pair of double mittens, in what is known as the fox and geese pattern, and all without the aid of spectacles. She tells with pride that she knit each of her boys a pair of mittens when they left home, remarking that the last pair was for her grandson. Her hearing is some- what impaired; but her memory is remarkable, and her mind wonderfully clear and strong."
RVIN HENRY SMITH, Commandant of the Soldiers' Home, Tilton, and a veteran of the Civil War, was born in Langdon, N.H., February 2, 1840,
son of Orin and Merinda (Partridge) Smith. His great-grandfather, Ebenezer Smith, who was a native of Massachusetts, served as a soldier in the Revolutionary War, and after- ward settled in Langdon, Sullivan County. Ezra Smith, the grandfather, who was born in Winchendon, Mass., September 13, 1778, ac- companied his parents to Langdon when he was ten years old, and was reared a farmer. He followed agricultural pursuits during the active period of his life, and died in Langdon. His wife, whose maiden name was Hannah Henry, reared four children; namely, Nancy, Alden, Orin, and Franklin. Alden and Orin were twins.
Orin Smith, born in Langdon in ISos, re- sided at home until his marriage, after which he engaged in farming upon his own account. In 1861 he sold his property in Langdon, and bought a farm in Peterboro, N. H., where he resided until his death, which occurred in 1884. His wife, Merinda, was a daughter of Samuel Partridge, of Alstead, N.H. Of her grandfather, Samuel Partridge (first), a brave Revolutionary patriot, who died in the service, it is related that he insisted upon doing duty in the Continental army, although unable to stand. Her father, Samuel Partridge (second), who was a native of Boston, settled in Alstead, where he became a prosperous farmer, and was an active member of the Congregational church. She and her husband were the parents of seven children - Ezra M., Ervin H., Harriet M., Albert O., Silas M., Emma R., and Alden E. Harriet M. married A. B. Tarbell, of Peterboro, and is no longer living. The mother died January 17, 1889. She was a member of the Congregational church.
Ervin Henry Smith began his education in the public schools of Langdon, and completed his studies at the Union Academy in Alstead. At the age of nineteen he went to Peterboro,
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and was a clerk in a store until 1864. He then enlisted in Company C, First New Hampshire Cavalry, which was attached to the Second Brigade, Third Division, Cavalry Corps, under the command of General Sheri- dan. He participated in Wilson's ten days'. raid in June, 1864, was present at the battle of Winchester, and remained with the army through the Shenandoah Valley campaign, until the engagement on the back road, No- vember 12, 1864, where he was taken prisoner. He was first confined in Richmond, and later at Salisbury. He suffered much in the latter place, where a hole in the ground was his only shelter, and the supply of food was scanty and of the poorest quality. The prisoners were divided into squads of one hundred men each. Between December 6 and February 22, sixty- one of Mr. Smith's squad died from hunger and exposure. The prisoners here were offered a chance to enlist in the Confederate army, with the assurance that they would not be ordered into the field. Mr. Smith was paroled on February 22, 1865, and was mustered out of service as a Sergeant on June 15 of that year. Returning to Peterboro, he was engaged in mercantile business there until 1872, when he moved to Springfield, Mass., and was in the hardware trade there for seven years. After this he was again in trade in Peterboro for a time; but on account of failing health he sold his business, and then engaged quite exten- sively in truck farming. When the Soldiers' Home was opened in Tilton, December 3, 1890, he was appointed Commandant by the Board of Managers. The home now furnishes an abiding-place for nearly one hundred veterans.
On December 18, 1867, Mr. Smith was united in marriage with Clara L. Gray, daugh- ter of William C. Gray, of Peterboro. He has one daughter, Clara M. In politics Mr. Smith
is a Republican. He cast his first Presiden- tial vote at Cedar Creek, Va., for Abraham Lincoln. While residing in Peterboro he served as Tax Collector for a number of years, was Town Treasurer for seven years, and he resigned from the Board of Selectmen upon his removal. He is a member of Peterboro Lodge, No. 15, I. O. O. F .; and a Past Com- mander of A. F. Stevens Post, No. 6, G. A. R., of Peterboro, N.H.
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