USA > New Hampshire > Rockingham County > Biographical review; this volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Rockingham County, New Hampshire > Part 25
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Mr. John G. Gilman's great-grandfather Gilman was in the treasury department of the Continental Loan Office, and was one of the Committee of Safety during the Revolution. A man of more than average intelligence, he furnished the brains for much of the local offi- cial business at that time. Three of his sons
were prominent men, namely : the Hon. Nathaniel Gilman, the grandfather of John G. ; John Taylor Gilman, Governor of New Hampshire; and the Hon. Nicholas' Gilman, one of the leading merchants and ship-builders of his day, a member of the House of Repre- sentatives, and afterward United States Sen- ator. (See Genealogy of the Gilman Family, by Arthur Gilman, published in 1869 by Joel Munsell; and Searches into the History of the Gillmans or Gilmans of England, Ireland, America, and Belgium, by Alexander W. Gill- man. London, 1895. Elliott Stock, Printer, 62 Paternoster Row.)
The Hon. Nathaniel Gilman was born in Exeter, November 10, 1759. A prominent business man, he was also a leader in public affairs. He succeeded his father in the treas- ury department of the Continental Loan Office ; was in the State Senate in 1795 and 1802; was Representative in 1804; and State Treas- urer from 1805 to 1814, declining after that to assume the cares of office. He died in Exeter, January 26, 1847. The Hon. Nathaniel Gil- man was twice married. His first wife, Abi- gail Odlin, daughter of the Rev. Woodbridge Odlin, of Exeter, was the mother of the fol- lowing children : Captain Nathaniel, above mentioned; Frances, wife of Colonel John Rogers; Abigail (deceased), wife of Dr. Will- iam Perry, of Exeter; Anna, second wife of Colonel John Rogers. Mr. Gilman's second wife was Dorothy Folsom, daughter of General Folsom. She was the mother of seven chil- dren, as follows: a daughter, Mary Olivia, who married Commodore Long; and six sons who settled in different parts of the Union - namely, Nicholas, Daniel, Samuel Taylor, John Taylor, Charles Edwin, and Joseph Taylor.
Captain Nathaniel Gilman was born in Exeter in 1793. His title was earned by active service in the War of 1812. A ship- ping merchant connected with an extensive trade, he succeeded his wife's father in Phila- delphia, and was for some time associated with his own uncle, Woodbridge Odlin, in general commercial business. About the year 1820 he removed the seat of his operations from Philadelphia to Exeter, and was for many | years a leader in the business circles of this
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city, active as a merchant, a manufacturer, and a dealer in real estate. He was not an aspirant for public office, but was elected to the State legislature. His death occurred Oc- tober 27, 1858.
Elizabeth Gardiner, who became the wife of Captain Gilman in 1817, was the eldest child of John and Mary (Jervis) Gardiner. Mr. Gardiner was a wealthy shipping merchant of Philadelphia. Mrs. Gilman was a lady of vivacious temperament and brilliant intellect, and wrote freely in prose and verse. Her social and family ties caused her to cherish a warm interest in the Society of Friends, and the adoption of their phraseology lent a peculiar charm to her conversation and letters. Her fascinating qualities of mind and heart insured the warm esteem of all who knew her. She died April 30, 1838, aged thirty-eight years.
By this union Mr. Gilman had seven chil- dren : Nathaniel G., who died July 30, 1891, aged seventy-three years; John Gardiner, the subject of this sketch, and Elizabeth Frances, who lives with him; Charles Jervis, a former member of Congress from Cumberland Dis- trict, State of Maine, a resident of Brunswick, Me. ; William Henry, a Yale graduate, who practised law for a while in Dayton, Ohio, and died in Exeter, June 3, 1860; Gardiner, who is unmarried, and lives with his brother and sister in Exeter; and Nicholas, a brilliant and. popular young man, who was graduated from Harvard with honors, and whose death, which occurred soon after, on October 31, 1854, was' a crushing blow to his father. Mr. Gilman's second wife was Lydia Colton, of Springfield, Mass., who died in 1872, in her sixty-sixth year. She had no children.
John Gardiner Gilman was prepared for col- lege at Phillips Exeter Academy, but did not take a college course, preferring to enter on his business career at once. In 1852 he went to Philadelphia, where he was in business twenty-five years, and had charge of an estate left to his mother by her father. He returned to Exeter in 1878; and, since the death of his brother Nathaniel, he and his brother Gardiner have had charge of the large estate left by their father. This property includes large tracts of timber and arable land, and the brothers are
engaged in general husbandry on an extensive scale. Mr. Gilman is a Republican in politi- cal preference. He carries the burden of his years gracefully, and appears much younger than he is.
LIPHALET CHIASE BROWN, one of the leading citizens of Epping, was born in this town, July 11, 1833. A son of Benjamin and Lydia (Chase) Brown, both natives of Epping, he belongs to two of the oldest families of the locality. Ilis pater- nal grandfather, Ezekiel Brown, a native of Epping, who was a Revolutionary soldier, died in 1816. Benjamin Brown, a son of Ezekiel, was also born in Epping, and resided there all his lifetime. He was a wholesale and retail merchant; and, with his teams de- livering goods in all parts of the surrounding county, he was very well known in the dis- trict. A very busy man, he yet was always ready to help the general good, and found time to discharge the duties of Captain of a militia company. His death occurred in 1839, when he was in the prime of life; and his funeral was the largest ever seen in Epping. His wife was a daughter of Eliphalet Chase, of Epping, and was of the fourth generation of her family in the town, and of the sixth gen- eration in the county. Her great great-great- grandfather was a resident of Hampton, this county ; her great-great-grandfather was a resident of Stratham, this county ; and her great-grandfather, James Chase, resided in Epping. Her grandfather, Josiah Chase, was born in this town. She bore her husband two sons and three daughters. Of these Ezekiel Burley Brown died in 1862, while serving in the Union army. One daughter, Rebecca C., the wife of John G. Ordway, is living.
Eliphalet Chase Brown, familiarly addressed as Chase Brown, received his early education in the schools of Epping. Being rather deli- cate in health, he was not sent to work as early as was customary at that time. After he attained his majority, he engaged in farm- ing, which he still pursues. Ile has dealt largely in real estate, and the land on which some of the leading factories of Epping are erected was sold by Mr. Brown. Though he
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is now nearing his sixty-third milestone on life's journey, his good health gives promise of its prolongation for many years more.
In 1855 Mr. Brown was married to Mary, daughter of David H. and Annie (Webster) Safford, of Amesbury, Mass. Mrs. Brown was educated in Amesbury and Epping. She had three children, namely : George, the eldest, who had entered on a promising career as a merchant in Epping, but died at the age of twenty-four; Annie E., whose death occurred when she was but three and a half years old; and Frank W., who is now a student at Tilton Seminary. Mr. Brown is interested in poli- tics, voting the Republican ticket, but not as an aspirant to office. His wife is a prominent member of the Relief Corps in Epping. Both attend the Congregational church. In their pretty home they preserve many heirlooms ; and during the World's Exposition in Chicago fifteen pieces of their rare china, which has been in the family for two hundred and fifty years, were on exhibition.
OP DRIC A. WADE, M. D., a highly skilled physician and surgeon of Salem Depot, N. H., is a native of Ballard- vale, Mass., having been born May 18, 1851, a son of Asel M. and Marian O. (Noble) Wade. His father was a native of Rhode Island, and his mother of Maine. Concerning the early representatives of the family in this country, little is known save that they were of English descent. Asel M. Wade was for many years identified with the cotton and woollen manufacturing business, principally He died in 1889. in Lawrence, Mass.
The boyhood of Edric A. Wade was chiefly spent in Lawrence. lle received his prelimi- nary education in the common and high schools of that place, then for about two years attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology at Boston. In 1876 he matriculated in the Med- ical School of Harvard University, from which he was graduated in June, 1879. Shortly after, in 1880, he opened an office here at Salem Depot, Rockingham County, and is now enjoying a successful and lucrative practice. Dr. Wade is a member of the Harvard Medical Association and of the New Hampshire State
Medical Society. He belongs to the United Order of Pilgrim Fathers at Salem Depot, in which he holds the position of Medical Exani- iner. In politics he has always been a stanch Republican.
Ile married Miss Mary J. Scruton, daughter of Tobias Scruton, of New Hampshire; and three children have been born to them - Harold R., Ethel B., and Norman S. Dr. Wade is the possessor of one of the finest homes in this section.
DWIN D. RAND, a resident of New Castle, was born in the town of Rye,
this county, May 5, 1843, a son of David L. and Mary S. (Yeaton) Rand. He is a descendant of one of the earliest families to settle in this part of the Granite State. - His paternal grandfather, John Rand, who lived and died in Rye, was a well-known farmer, and noted for his potato crops, which generally exceeded those of his neighbors both in quality and quantity. John Rand married Sidney Lang, a native of Lee, Strafford County.
David L. Rand, also a native of Rye, ob- tained his education in that town and at Phillips Exeter Academy. He subsequently learned the carpenter's trade, at which he worked until his death, which occurred when he was but thirty-two years of age. He mar- ried Miss Mary S. Yeaton, a daughter of Hopley and Lydia (Foye) Yeaton, respectively natives of New Castle and Ryc. Three sons were born of their union; namely, Francis W., John A., and Edwin D. Francis WV.,. who enlisted for service in the late war in the Ninth New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry, died defending the Union. John A. is mar- ried, and now lives at Portsmouth, N. H.
Edwin D. Rand was educated in the district school, and afterward worked on the home farm until eighteen years of age. His patri- otic ardor was then aroused by the call for vol- unteers to suppress the rebellion of the Slave States, and he enlisted in the Seventh New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry. He was in active service until August, 1865, when he was mustered out, having been with his regi- ment three years and ten months. He was a
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participant in eighteen pitched battles, besides several minor engagements; and by brave con- duct on the field he won promotion from the rank of private to that of Corporal, Sergeant, Sergeant-major, and finally to that of Captain of his company, for which he received the com- mission on January 1, 1865, at Wilmington, N. C. After his return from the war he was employed in the Portsmouth navy yard for sev- eral years, for the greater part of the time in the capacity of foreman of the engineering department.
Captain Rand was married in 1872 to Miss Elizabeth T. C. White, a daughter of Albert Il. and Frances (Yeaton) White, both lifelong residents of New Castle, and representatives of prominent pioneer families of this part of the county. Politically, the Captain has always been identified with the Republican party, and cast his first Presidential vote in 1872 for General U. S. Grant. Public-spirited to a high degree, he takes a lively interest in the welfare of his town. He has been a member of the Board of Selectmen for the past two years. He is a Knight of Pythias, belonging to Wentworth Lodge, No. 22, of New Castle; and an esteemed Comrade of Storer Post, No. I, Grand Army of the Republic.
EORGE A. PERKINS, formerly one of Portsmouth's esteemed citizens, was born August 3, 1842. He was a son of Elias Perkins, who was the father of ten children, all now deceased except Langdon M. Perkins. Mr. Perkins received his educa- tion in the common schools of Portsmouth, and remained beneath the parental roof-tree until twenty-two years of age. He then bought the business of one of his brothers, who had a substantial ice trade. This he car- ried on until 1867, after which he and his brother, Langdon M., under the firm name of the Portsmouth Ice Company, continued it for five years. At the end of that period, in 1873, the firm was dissolved, after which Mr. Perkins alone supplicd ice to his numerous patrons until the time of his death, which oc- curred on January 8, 1889.
In his political relations Mr. Perkins was a consistent Democrat, and for two years he ably
served the city as Alderman. He was a prom- inent member of Osgood Lodge, No. 48, and of Strawberry Bank Encampment, No. 5, In- dependent Order of Odd Fellows, had filled all the chairs in each organization, and was a delegate to the Grand Lodge. A member of the Knights of Honor, he served as Dictator of the lodge, and as a delegate to the Grand Lodge. He was likewise an active member of Damon Lodge, No. 9, Knights of Pythias, all the chairs of which he had occupied. He also belonged to the State Cavalry, in which he held the rank of Sergeant. In religion he was a working Christian, and a conscientious mem- ber of the Calvin Baptist Church, to which his widow, Mrs. Elizabeth Perkins, still belongs. He took an earnest interest in religious enter- prises, and gave his encouragement and finan- cial support to the Young Men's Christian Association when it was first organized. Naturally benevolent and generous, he gave liberal donations toward charitable purposes, and for some time supplied the Cottage Hospi- tal and the Old Ladies' Home with ice, free of charge. He was temperate in every re- spect, pure and clean in thought and habit, both his public and private life being above reproach. Domestic in his tastes, he found his chief pleasure at the family fireside, where he hospitably welcomed his many friends, and where his influence is still felt.
Mr. Perkins was united in marriage, May 25, 1869, with Elizabeth A., daughter of Richard Rothwell, of Dover, N. H., where her ancestors lived for many years. Mrs. Perkins was educated at the Dover High School, re- maining with her parents, who had a family of ten children, until her union with Mr. Perkins. She is a woman of many estimable qualities, and shared with her late husband the respect of the community.
J OSEPH P. SIMPSON, the well-known Supervisor of the town of Greenland, was born here, August 24, 1826, son of John and Comfort (Haines) Simpson. John Simpson, his grandfather, was born at sea, while his parents were coming hither from Ireland. John Simpson, Jr., the father of Joseph P., was also a native of Greenland.
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He was a Democrat in politics, and prominent in town affairs, serving as Selectman and Town Treasurer. His wife, whose maiden name was Comfort Haines, a native of the same town, had several children; namely, Charles, Catherine, John A., Sarah P'., Au- gustus, Mary, Nathaniel, Fila, Elizabeth, Joseph P., and Susan. Nathaniel, Joseph, and Susan are the only living members of this large family. The father died in October, 1862, in the eighty-first year of his age. His wife passed away in 1875, in her eighty- seventh year. The remains of both were in- terred in the Greenland Cemetery. They were highly respected members of the Congre- gationalist church.
Joseph P. Simpson was born upon the home farm, and there resided until 1865, when he moved to the farm he now owns and occupies. This estate contains seventy-five acres, which lie utilizes for general farming. He has also worked at the carpenter's trade. He served three years in the militia, one as Captain and two as First Lieutenant. Mr. Simpson has been Selectman for four terms, and he has been Supervisor for the past sixteen consecu- tive years. He is an influential member of the Democratic party.
On May 13, 1868, Mr. Simpson was united in marriage to Miss Sarah E. Frink, sister of J. S. H. Frink. Mr. and Mrs. Simpson have one daughter and two sons, namely : Mary F., who is unmarried, and lives at home; John S., who is an electrician; and Joseph O., at pres- ent studying in Dartmouth College.
EV. EDWARD G. SMITH, pastor of the First Congregational Church of Epping, N. H., was born in Mon- mouth, Mc., October 21, 1839. He is a son of Jacob G. and Jane (Tilton) Smith. His father, who is now an octogena- rian, has been engaged in agriculture since his boyhood. He has been . prominent in local affairs, serving on the Board of Selectmen six- teen years. Mrs. Smith passed to the world beyond in 1854.
The Rev. Edward G. Smith's boyhood was spent on his father's farm. He acquired his early education in private schools near his
home, and attended Monmouth Academy, after- ward teaching for four years in this institution and in neighboring schools. After being graduated from the seminary at Bangor, he was ordained in 1871, and installed as pastor of the church at Mattapoisett, Mass., which was under his charge about four years and a half. His next pastorate was at Essex, Mass., where he remained two years; and from there he went to North Leominster, Mass. Here he built a neat and substantial church; and, after four years and a half of conscientious and unremitting labor, he was placed in charge of the church at Sharon, which he re- modelled and greatly improved. Mr. Smith was six years at Sharon, and was then called to Saugus, Mass., where he remained for a like period. In 1893 he assumed the duties of his present charge, and under his ministra- tions the congregation has steadily increased. Mr. Smith is a zealous and persistent worker, and endeavors to better his charges temporally as well as spiritually. He is an able preacher, filled with the enthusiasm which comes from a firm belief in the doctrines which he preaches.
Mr. Smith was married, May 30, 1871, to Miss Ella H. Greeley, a native of Levant, Me., and daughter of Jacob Greeley, of Salis- bury, N.H., who was related to Horace Greeley. Mr. Smith has one son, Eugene Greeley Smith.
Though a pronounced Republican and an enthusiastic admirer of Thomas B. Reed, Mr. Smith is not active in politics. He is always ready to aid the cause of education, and served on the School Committee in Monmouth and on the School Board in Saugus during the greater part of his pastorate there. He be- longs to the Masonic Order, and Mrs. Smith is a member of the Order of the Eastern Star.
ONATHAN A. LANE, one of Ray- mond's well-to-do farmers, was born upon the farm he now occupies, De- cember 3, 1832, son of Jonathan and Betsey (Lane) Lane. The first representative of the family in America of whom there is any information was Andrew Lane, who became a resident of Hlingham, Mass., about 1639.
JONATHAN A. LANE.
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William Lane, who came from England in 1651, was the first to establish his residence in Raymond, having previously been a resident of Boston, Mass. William was twice married, and reared a family of seven children. Jona- than A. Lane is a direct descendant of An- drew Lane. Andrew's son, John Lane, who was born February 16, 1685, married Mary Libby, of Rye, and was lost at sea. John's son, David Lane, who was great-grandfather of Jonathan A., reared five children. Of these David Lane, Jr., a native and lifelong resi- dent of Raymond, who was accidentally killed at the age of thirty-six years, married Mary Morris, and was the father of three children - Jonathan, Daniel, and David.
Jonathan Lane was born in Raymond. As his father died when he was but eight years old, he was obliged to look out for himself before reaching his teens. , At the age of ten he managed his own affairs with a knowledge and judgment that would have done credit to a much older person. Having inherited the homestead farm, he conducted it successfully, and was besides largely interested in lumber- ing. In the latter business he was also able to make money by cutting and hauling the stumpage after felling the standing timber. He was one of the most enterprising business men of this section for many years. In the State militia he held the rank of Major, and was commonly addressed as Major Lane. He was a Whig in politics, and he served the town in the capacities of Tax Collector and Select- man for several years. By his death, which occurred in July, 1870, when he was seventy- one years old, the community lost one of its most useful and respected members. He mar- ried Betsey Lane, a native of Chester, N. H., who by him became the mother of eight chil- dren. Of these there are living: Olive, the wife of Richard Clough, of Raymond; Mary J., the wife of Isaiah Young, of Deerfield, this county ; Julia, who married Tracy Clough, of Ashby; and Jonathan A., the subject of this sketch. Both parents attended the Congrega- tional church, of which the father was an active member.
Jonathan A. Lane was educated in the com- mon schools of this town and of Chester, Vt. Since he came into possession of the home
farm he has carried on general husbandry upon a large scale, according to the most advanced methods. He keeps ten head of choice cattle, four horses, thirty sheep, and makes his own butter. The estate contains three hundred acres of land. Besides this he owns seventy- five acres located elsewhere.
On December 14, 1868, Mr. Lane wedded Helen Maria Moss, daughter of Hazen Moss, of Chester, N. HI. ; and he has a daughter, Mamie F., who is residing at home. In poli- tics he is a Republican. He has served with ability as a member of the School Committee. In his religious views he is a Congregation- alist, and has been a member of that church for some years. A portrait of Mr. Lane is presented with this sketch.
EORGE BOSS, who is successfully engaged in business as a provision dealer in the city of Portsmouth, is a worthy representative of the German element of New England. Ile was born July 7, 1855, at Kirdoff-by-Hamburg, in Hesse-Nassau, Ger- many, a son of William Peter Boss, who was born in the same place. The father spent his life in the place of his nativity, being em- ployed as a forester for a score of years. This appointment, which is bestowed for life by the town officials, gave him the jurisdiction of five thousand acres of woodland, in which he had to oversee the cutting of the timber and super- vise the cultivation; for in some parts of the Fatherland portions of the forest have to be tilled. lle died while still in the prime of manhood, being but forty five years of age. He had married Margaret, daughter of John Werheim, of the same village; and, of their family of four sons and a daughter, the sons are all living.
George Boss acquired a high-school educa- tion in his native land, where he lived until fifteen years old. Coming then to America, he found employment in New York City, where he remained for three or four years. The first year he was a clerk in the Thompson Market, afterward occupying the same position in the Washington Market for eighteen months, and the next few months was em- ployed by a Mr. Burke of the same city. In
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1874 Mr. Boss came to Portsmouth, and for a little more than a year worked on the farm of Mr. John Elwize. Desirous of establishing himself permanently in some congenial occu- pation, he started his present business in 1876, and from a modest beginning has won an ex- tensive and lucrative trade. He buys live stock, and does his own slaughtering. In the selection of beeves and other animals he is particular, and in the care of his meat gives his personal attention, having always a choice selection for his customers.
Mr. Boss was married December 2, 1882, to Minerva, daughter of Jonathan Varrel, of Rye, N. H. ; and they are the parents of one child, a son named Victor G. In politics Mr. Boss is a stanch Democrat, and takes an intelligent interest in municipal affairs, having capably served two terms as a member of the Common Council. He belongs to Massasoit Tribe, No. 16, Improved Order of Red Men, and relig- iously is a conscientious member of the Ports- mouth Congregational church.
EE PICKERING, an enterprising farmer and an ex-Representative of Newington, was born here, May 30, 1818, son of Thomas and Lydia (Low) Picker- ing. His grandfather was John C. Pickering. Thomas Pickering was also a native of New- ington. He was united in marriage to Miss Lydia Low; and they had five children, namely : Thomas, who went to California in 1849, and died there in 1852; Richard, who died in 1860; Mary lives in the town of New- ington, being now in her eightieth year; Gee, the subject of this sketch ; and Elizabeth, who became Mrs. Joshua Pickering. The father was a Colonel in the War of 1812.
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