Biographical review; this volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Rockingham County, New Hampshire, Part 3

Author:
Publication date: 1896
Publisher: Boston [Mass.] Biographical review pub. co.
Number of Pages: 658

USA > New Hampshire > Rockingham County > Biographical review; this volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Rockingham County, New Hampshire > Part 3

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Ebenezer Hanson, Dr. Hanson's grand- father, who was born in 1759, was a farmer of Strafford, N. H. He married Abigail Caverno, and reared thirteen children. Na- thaniel Hanson, the doctor's father, was born in Strafford, May 11, 1807. He was a wheel- wright, and followed his trade during a great part of his life, at the same time cultivating a farm. A Republican in politics, he cast his vote at elections for the best man; but he made no effort to attain public office. He lived to be fourscore and four. His wife, who was a daughter of Edmund Evans, of Strafford, died at the age of eighty-two. £ Both attended the Baptist church. The children reared by them were: John, Caleb W., Levi II., Na- thaniel R., Eben, Lewis F., Joseph B., George, and Jennie. Jennie is now Mrs. Foss.

Dr. Caleb W. Hanson received his early education in the New Hampton and Mount Vernon Academies. A part of his professional training was obtained at the New York Uni- versity and Bowdoin College, in each of which he studied for a year. Graduating with the class of 1858 from Hanover College, he im- mediately began practice at Northwood, which has been the scene of his labors ever since. The demands of his profession in the past thirty-eight years have often been of a most arduous character. He has been obliged to

BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW

take long rides into the country at all times of the night and day and in all kinds of weather. Now, conceiving that his time has come for the enjoyment of some leisure, he is gradually reducing his visiting list,

In 1859 he was united in marriage with Emma A., daughter of Morris Knowles, of Lawrence, Mass., the builder of the mills at that place. Dr. and Mrs. Hanson have had one child, Nellie B. She is the wife of John G. Towle, of Northwood, and has three chil- dren - Murray H., Gertrude E., and Helen A. Dr. Hanson is a member of the State Medical Association.

ICAJAH OTIS HALL, who was born in Strafford, N. H., May 16, 1822, is now a resident of Green- land, Rockingham County, N.H. His name will wake a throb of interest and pleasant recollection in the hearts of many of his old pupils who studied under his direction in the neighboring towns and in Newburyport, Mass., and people with whom he had dealings in Boston as stationer and book-keeper. He is the son of Ralph and Lydia (Pearl) Hall, and is a representative of an old Colonial family of English origin. Mr. Hall has a plate which came from the mother country and is marked with his father's name.

Among the early settlers of New England were so many bearing the name John Hall that there exists in regard to them, it is said, "no little confusion." Savage mentions John, of Charlestown, who "came in 1630, it is thought, from Coventry, probably in the fleet with Winthrop"; John, of Dover, and his son John, also born in England, who was a Deacon; John, of Lynn and Salisbury; John, of Concord; John, of Middletown - not to mention others. Mr. Micajah O. Hall's grandfather, Samuel Hall, and his immediate ancestors were born in Strafford, N.H., and spent their lives there, following the pursuit of agriculture. Samuel Hall died in the house where his father and grandfather had closed their eyes in the last sleep. His wife bore the sweet old name of Charity.

Their son, Ralph Hall, grew up like the majority of farmers' boys in his day, acquiring

his education in the district school and work- ing in the fields as soon as old enough to be of use. Of an ambitious disposition, he hoped to do better away from home; and, purchasing his time of his father, he went to Boston, Mass., where he was for some time in the employ of Josiah Quincy, then Mayor of the city. Re- turning to Greenland, he leased the Robinson farm, which he cultivated for thirteen years, then buying the Shaw farm, which is now oc- cupied by his son, the subject of this sketch. Mr. Ralph Hall was one of the most success- ful farmers in the State, and was one of the leading men in Greenland. He was a mem- ber of the Town Board of Selectmen for sev- eral years, and was two years in the State leg- islature. A member of the Methodist church, he was noted for his liberality in contributing toward all its worthy enterprises. He died in 1876, aged seventy-seven years. His wife, who was the daughter of Abram Pearl, died at the age of sixty-eight. Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Hall were the parents of the following chil- dren : Mary C., Sarah E., and Lydia E., who have passed to the other life; Anna Maria, wife of F. R. Mitchell, of Brooklyn, N. Y., and mother of two children - Mary A. and Pearl; and Micajah Otis, the subject of this sketch.

M. Otis Hall applied himself diligently to his books in boyhood, finishing his studies at Greenland Academy. For some time after leaving school he worked at farming in the growing season, and taught during the winter terms, presiding over schools in his native town and in Rye, New Castle, and Portsmouth. He subsequently gave his whole attention to teaching, obtaining a position as master of a school in Joppa, a part of Newbury, Mass., and then taking charge of a school in Bell- ville, in the same town. He was next in- stalled as principal of the Centre School in Newburyport, with two assistants. It has been said that, considering the amount of nervous force and mental energy expended, no profession is so ill paid as school teach- ing. Hoping to realize a little more finan- cially, Mr. Hall purchased of Moses H. Sar- gent, in Newburyport, a book and stationery store, which he conducted till the war began, when he disposed of it and obtained a posi-

BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW

tion as paymaster's clerk on the frigate "Sabine": and after that he took up book- keeping as an expert, and also opened a sta- tionery store on Cornhill, Boston. He event- ually sold his store on Cornhill, and was engaged as a book-keeper on India Street, the great commercial warehouse centre of Boston. About this time he was called to Chicago on business; and after his return he was employed in the Boston custom-house under Collectors Russell, Simmons, Worthington, Beard, and Saltonstall. On the death of a sister who had been living on the homestead in Greenland he purchased her half of the farm; and he has since made his home here, enjoying a season of well-earned leisure after years of mental work.

Mr. Hall was first married in 1846 to Re- becca A., daughter of Dr. George Odell, of Greenland, N.H. Mrs. Rebecca A. Hall died in 1869, while he was engaged as book- keeper on India Street, Boston, leaving five children, namely: George Ralph, a widower, who has lost two children; Alice, unmarried, who is with her father; Micajah O., who mar- ried Miss Claire Pond, and is book-keeper for Brown, Durrell & Co., of Boston; Sarah H., wife of Charles H. McIntosh, of Wellesley Hills, Mass., and mother of four children - Elsie, Helen, Bernice P., and Arthur; and Caroline A., who is the wife of Thomas W. Berry, a native of Nova Scotia, and mother of five children - Gertrude R., Charlotte H., Ralph H., Henry O. (deceased), and James O. Mr. and Mrs. Berry reside on the home farm with Mr. Hall, Mr. Berry superintending the farm work. Mr. Hall contracted a second marriage, his wife being Charlotte M. Jenkins, a member of the Jenkins family that owned Jenkins Island, off Portsmouth. He has been a Republican since the formation of the party. While in Newburyport he was a member of the School Committee, Secretary of the Board, and Secretary of the Lyceum Board. Mr. Hall is a Royal Arch Mason.

ILLIAM R. BUNKER, of Epping, who was for nearly a quarter of a century proprietor and manager of the Perkins Hotel, was born in Milton, N. H.,

in 1815, son of Enoch and Hannah (Drew) Bunker. Enoch Bunker was a native and lifelong resident of the Granite State, and devoted the greater part of his days to agricult- ural pursuits. He was a quiet and unassum- ing citizen, respected by all who knew him. His wife, who likewise was born in New Hampshire, died in 1862.

William R. Bunker had only the advantages of a common-school education, and the com- mon schools in the early part of the century were much inferior in the matter of equipment to the schools of to-day. The branches of the tree of knowledge were not bent to the juve- nile grasp as they are at present; but the child who would excel had to put forth his utmost endeavor and work hard for the boon of learning. The school-houses in the rural districts were far apart, and the Bunker lad was accustomed to walk two and a half miles to recite his lessons. When sixteen years of age, he found employment in the cotton- mills at New Market, N. H., where he re- mained four years, going then to Lowell, Mass. After working fifteen years in the Lowell cotton-mills, Mr. Bunker returned to New Hampshire, and for about eight years was engaged in farming at Lec. In 1860 he purchased the brick hotel in Epping now known as the Perkins Hotel; and for twenty-four years he successfully managed the house, making many friends by his so- cial qualities and genial disposition. He is now retired from active business, and devotes his time to looking after his farm and other real estate.

In 1845 Mr. Bunker was married to Miss Hannah Stilson, of Lee, N. H., who died in May, 1890. He has no children living. In politics he favors the Democratic side, and he has the respect and confidence of his fellow- partisans. He has served his townsmen in the capacity of Selectman, and has creditably rep- resented the district in the New Hampshire legislature. A member of the Masonic fra- ternity, he has passed the thirty-second de- gree, and is one of the oldest men in the order. Though Mr. Bunker has seen four- score winters, he is still hale and hearty, and bids fair to enjoy many more years in his pleasant home.

WILLIAM R. BUNKER.

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ARK SCRIBNER, one of Ray- mond's most enterprising real es- tate owners and an ex-member of the New Hampshire legislature, was born in this town, September 7, 1845, son of Daniel and Annie H. (Langford) Scribner. The family is of Scotch origin ; and Mr. Scrib- ner's great-grandfather, John Scribner, was a native of Fremont, N. H. He bought one thousand acres of land in the town of Ray- mond, his original tract including the farm which is now owned by his great-grandson ; and he eventually divided his property equally among his sons. He was a prominent busi- ness man of the town, transacting all the legal affairs of its early residents ; and he was known as an able, upright, and worthy citizen. He died in 1813. He was the father of three sons - Manoah, Samuel, and John.

Manoah Scribner, Mr. Scribner's grand- father, was born in Fremont, and accompanied his parents to Raymond. He inherited a por- tion of his father's estate, becoming one of the most prosperous agriculturists of his day ; and he served as a soldier in the Revolution- ary War. He died in Raymond, December 8, 1818. He married for his first wife Anna Taylor, of Fremont, N.H., who died February 14, 1794, leaving three children; namely, Mary, Betsey, and Grace. For his second wite he married Sarah Fitts, of Sandown, N.H., who died August 26, 1841, and by this marriage five children were reared; namely, Annie, Daniel, Sylvia, John, and Abigail.

Daniel Scribner, son of Manoah and Sarah F. Scribner, was born upon the farm which is now occupied by his son Mark. Succeeding eventually to its ownership, he became a stir- ring and progressive farmer and one of the most prominent citizens of the town. In pol- itics he supported the Democratic party, by which he was elected a member of the Board of Selectmen for several years; and he repre- sented his district with ability in the legis- lature. He died June 27, 1871, aged seventy - four years. He attended the Congregational church. His wife, Annie Langford, a native of Portsmouth, N.H., became the mother of seven children, six of whom are living, namely: Abigail, wife of Dr. James F. Brown, of Manchester; Elizabeth, wife of

D. L. Guernsey, of Concord, N.H .; Martha, who resides with her mother in this town; Mark, the owner of the homestead; Charles, also a resident of this town; and Julia, who resides in Boston.

Mark Scribner acquired his education in the common schools of Raymond, and after finishing his studies he assisted in carrying on the farm. Since starting in life upon his own account, he has advanced rapidly in prosper- ity, conducting various business operations with good judgment and practical ability. His property. contains four hundred acres, divided into tillage, pasture, and wood land, 'and the cultivated portion is extremely fertile. He deals in uncut timber, also carrying on lumbering operations quite extensively, and handles a large amount of wood for fuel pur- poses. He has long occupied an important position in the management of town affairs, and is a leading spirit in the Democratic party, by which he has been elected a Select- man for eight terms. In 1883 he represented the district in the legislature with credit both to himself and his constituency.

In May, 1867, Mr. Scribner was married to Helen Kimball Fitts, his first wife; and by this union there were five children, of whom the only survivor is Fanny S., wife of Charles Brock, of Raymond. In April, 1890, he wedded for his second wife Georgia E. Batch- elder, of this town.

Fraternally, Mr. Scribner is connected with the Rockingham Lodge, No. 76, A. F. & A. M., of Candia; Junietta Lodge, No. 47, Independent Order of Odd Fellows; and Granite Encampment, No. 14, of Raymond, of which he has filled the principal chairs; and Raymond Grange, Patrons of Husbandry, of which he has been Master for nearly two years. Mr. and Mrs. Scribner attend the Methodist Episcopal church, of which Mr. Scribner is a member; and he has acted as Steward and Trustce.

J ACKSON M. HOYT, a well-known and respected citizen of Newington, was born in this town on January 15, 1850. The Hoyt family, which was probably of German extraction, settled in the

BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW

town of Newington in the year 1703, when the place was not separate from what are now the towns of Dover and Portsmouth. Mr. Jack- son M. Hoyt's great-great-great-grandfather was William Hoyt, who was born, it is said, in Amesbury, Mass. William Hoyt had a son, John, who had a son, Dennis, born in the town of Newington, May 1, 1744. This Mr. Hoyt had a son, Samuel, who was born on August 15, 1772, and who had in turn a son named John, who was born on March 30, 1802, in the birthplace of so many of his ancestors.

John Hoyt, son of Samuel, was a brick- maker by trade; and he struck the first brick on the Rogers estate in Portsmouth, where his son Alfred now lives. John Hoyt was mar- ried three times. His first wife was Eliza- beth Dame, whom he wedded about the year 1826. By her he had seven children - James WV., who resides in the town of Newington ; John E., who died on August 12, 1893; Martha, the wife of Joseph S. Hoyt; Mary F., the wife of James Packard; Alfred C .; Samuel W., who lives in Portsmouth; and Martin, who also resides in Portsmouth. Mrs. Elizabeth D. Hoyt died in September, 1842. Mr. Hoyt next married Miss Martha Nutter, by whom he had one child, Martha A., who is the wife of Ira Coffin, of Pittsburg, Pa. He was married the third time in 1844 to Miss Abigail P. Coleman. Five children, four sons and one daughter, were the result of this union. Those that survive are: Henry, who resides in Lynn; Jackson M., the subject of this sketch, further mentioned below; and Nancy, the wife of Charles A. Nutter, of the firm of Nutter, Barnes & Co. of Boston, Mass. Two children died in infancy, some time apart. They both bore the name of Win- field 'S. Mr. John Hoyt came to the farm whereon his son Jackson now resides in 1845, and died in 1868. His wife died in 1878, at the age of sixty-four years.

Jackson M. Hoyt was born and reared on his father's farm. He received a district- school education, and later took a business course at Comer's Commercial College in Bos- ton, Mass. He was eighteen years of age when his father died; and he returned to take charge of the farm, one of thirteen acres, which he finally purchased in 1872. He has

been a teacher for five terms in various towns outside of Newington, and has taught the Newington school for three terms.

In 1876 Mr. Hoyt was appointed by the Governor of the State a Justice of the Peace for the county of Rockingham, which office he held for fifteen years, refusing then to have his commission renewed. In 1892 he served on the Board of Building Committee for the erection of the Langdon Public Library Build- ing, a structure to which every loyal citizen points with pride.

Mr. Hoyt showed his efficiency and his ca- pacity for bearing the burden of office at the early age of twenty-one, when he was elected Town Clerk of Newington, which office he held for three successive years, valid testi- mony of the confidence his fellow-townsmen reposed in his integrity and ability. He was appointed Tax Collector in 1872, and again in 1875, a member of the Board of Education in 1883, 1884, and 1885, and Selectman in 1886, 1887, 1894, and 1895. He has held the office of superintendent of the Newington Cemetery since 1890. Mr. Hoyt is a solid Democrat in political faith, always doing his best to assist his party in every way, not from any hope for the possible spoils, but from a rigid sense of duty and a sincere desire to improve the political status of the county of Rockingham. He is an earnest and enthusi- astic member of and a true and unselfish worker in the Congregational church, at whose meetings he always fills the office of clerk in a thorough and typical manner.

Mr. Jackson M. Hoyt was married on No- vember 28, 1878, to Miss Mary S. Pickering, of the town of Newington, daughter of Frank T. and Sophia E. G. (DeWitt) Pickering. Mr. and Mrs. Hoyt have been blessed with eight children, namely: John F .; Martin D .; Martha S .; Mary B .; Abigail D .; Jackson Manning; one child that died in infancy; and Willis Hadley.

Shute.

ENRY A. SHUTE, EsQ., Judge of the Exeter police court, was born in Exeter, November 17, 1856, son of George S. and Joanna (Simkins) His great-grandfather was Nathaniel

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Shute, a ship - builder of Newfields, this county ; and his grandfather, Henry Shute, was born in Newfields, April 17, 1794. Henry Shute, who lived for a number of years in Exeter, was a merchant, a lumberman, and a manufacturer. It was he who furnished the lumber needed in the erection of Exeter town hall. His death happened at Exeter in De- cember, 1858. His wife, whose maiden name was Eliza Rowe Smith, reared two sons and two daughters. Their eldest son, Henry A., a Dartmouth graduate and a classmate of Daniel Webster's son, was a bright student, and was to have qualified for the bar if he had not died at the age of twenty-one. The sec- ond child, Ann Eliza, died of consumption at the age of thirty-three. The third, George S., was the father of Henry A. The young- est, Sarah F., who is unmarried, lives with her brother.

George S. Shute was born in Exeter, March 4, 1827, and there received his education. He was subsequently a clerk in the naval department of the custom-house at Boston for many years. In 1889 he retired from active work, and is now residing on Court Street, Exeter, where he took up his residence in 1870. In politics Mr. Shute is a Republican. His marriage took place in March, 1853. His wife, who was a native of Brereton, Eng- land, died in February, 1895, aged sixty-nine years. She was the mother of nine children, seven of whom attained maturity ; namely, Celia F., Cornelia F., Georgie W., Annie P., Frank F., Edward, and Henry A. Cornelia F. is the wife of C. E. Byington ; and Georgie W. is a teacher in Albany, N. Y.

Henry A. Shute received his early educa- tion in Exeter, preparing for college at Phillips Exeter Academy. He graduated at Harvard in 1879, with a class numbering two hundred and sixty members. He was admitted to the bar in 1882, and commenced practice immediately. In April, 1883, he was ap- pointed Judge of the police court, a position which he has efficiently filled up to the present time. Judge Shute was married November 18, 1885, to Amelia F. Weeks, daughter of Nathaniel and Frances (Prescott) Weeks, of Exeter. Mr. Weeks, who was a merchant grocer, died in 1880; and his wife died in

1885. They had besides Mrs. Shute a son, Everett P. Weeks, of Exeter. Mrs. Shute died January 27, 1895, in her thirty-fourth year, leaving two children - Richard Everett and Nathalie, aged respectively eight and two years. Judge Shute is a Republican. He belongs to one social organization, the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows. In religious belief he is a Unitarian.

LBERT B. MOORE, Town Clerk and Treasurer of Northwood, was born in this town, November 18, 1856, a son of Samuel S. and Anna M. (Batchelder) Moore. His grandfather, John Moore, was a native of Stratham, Rockingham County, and an active member of the farming community of that town. John Moore lived to the age of eighty years. His first wife, Lydia Wiggin, died while still in the fresh bloom of womanhood, leaving the following children: Sarah (Mrs. Durgin), Marguerite A. (Mrs. Peck), Lydia W. (Mrs. Peck), Eliz- abeth W., and Samuel S.

Samuel S. Moore learned the shoemaker's trade, and, after following it for a number of years, engaged in mercantile pursuits. The last fifteen years of his life were devoted to agricultural work on a farm in this town. A Republican in politics, he served for two years as Town Clerk of Northwood. He died at the age of fifty-nine. His wife, Ann, was a daughter of Benjamin Batchelder, of North- wood, and a grand-daughter of Simon Batch- elder, a native of this town and a Revolution- ary patriot. She is still living. Mr. and Mrs. Moore attended the Congregational church. They reared but one child, the sub- ject of this sketch.

Albert B. Moore was educated in the public schools of Northwood. Like his father, he learned the shoemaker's trade, and worked at it for some time. He then abandoned the bench for the field, and for some years he has been prosperously engaged in general farming. Ile has a good farm, on which he has made many improvements ; and almost every foot of his property is turned to good account.

Mr. Moore was married in 1891 to Mary E., daughter of Eben French, of Lawrence, Mass.

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Mrs. Moore died in 1892, at the age of thirty- five. Mr. Moore is a Republican in politics. Ile has served as Town Clerk since 1885 and as Town Treasurer since 1888, and has the confidence and esteem of the citizens of North- wood, regardless of party lines. Fraternally, he belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, being a member of Olive Branch Lodge, No. 83, of Northwood Narrows. A representative of an old Northwood family, Mr. Moore is well known in this part of Rock- ingham County and as widely respected. Hc is also Secretary of the Board of Trustees of Coe's Northwood Academy.

HARLES R. ROWE, a prominent farmer of Candia and a representa- tive of an old and reputable New Hampshire family, was born in Candia, July 26, 1834. The records of this family date as far back as 1595, when its founder, Nicholas Rowc, it is said, was a citi- zen of Plymouth, England. He emigrated to the American colonies a few years after the landing of the Pilgrim Fathers, and settled at Strawberry Bank, now Portsmouth, N.H. Nicholas Rowe was one of twenty inhabitants of that settlement who on May 25, 1640, signed a deed, making a grant of fifty acres of land to certain trustees for a glebc, to be held for church purposes forever.

A large family of children were born to Nicholas Rowe and his wife Elizabeth. One of their descendants, Daniel by name, married Abigail Stockman, of Hampton Falls, and lived there until 1762. In that year they came to Candia with their son Isaiah, settling on a farm on the Pine Hill Road, subsequently removing to Candia North Road, where they located permanently on the farm now owned by Deacon George S. Richardson. Daniel Rowe taught school in Candia. His wife was known as an earnest Christian woman.

Isaiah Rowe, great-grandfather of Charles R. Rowe, was a prominent man in Candia, where he held many offices, being one of the organizers of the town. He was a patriot soldier in the Revolutionary War, holding the rank of Sergeant in Captain Moses Baker's company in 1777. He died in 1810, and was

buricd beside his parents in Hill Cemetery, where are now resting the remains of members of six generations of the Rowe family. Isaiah Rowe and his wife, Sarah Ilealey, had eleven children, one of them a son named Jonathan ; and this Jonathan left a son called Moses, born in the town of Candia, July 27, 1793.

Moses Rowe married Miss Sarah Brown, of Candia, and was the father of ten children, eight of whom are living - Moses E., in Bed- ford, Mass .; Mary J., the wife of Joshua D. Guyer, a manufacturer of Boston, Mass. ; Hiram D., a dentist living in Brewster, Mass. ; Francis D., a resident of Candia ; Charles R., of Candia; Lorinda L., the wife of Gilman K. Worthen, of Manchester; Lavinia T., the wife of Henry W. Rowe, of Boston; and Hen- rietta, wife of Calvin A. Rowe, also of Bos- ton, Mass. ; Mary and Emeline both died in infancy.

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Biographical review; this volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Rockingham County, New Hampshire, Part 3

Author: Publication date: 1896 Publisher: Boston [Mass.] Biographical review pub. co. Number of Pages: 658

Author:
Publication date: 1896
Publisher: Boston [Mass.] Biographical review pub. co.
Number of Pages: 658