USA > New Hampshire > Rockingham County > Biographical review; this volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Rockingham County, New Hampshire > Part 75
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some extent, engaged in seafaring. He died at the early age of thirty years. His wife, whose maiden name was Martha Weeks, bore him three children. She subsequently became the wife of Samuel Hale.
Ichabod Rollins was born in Rollinsford, January 12, 1790. In early manhood he en- gaged as clerk in a general store in Ports- mouth. While here, he was also obliged to look out for the interests of his employer in a ship-yard, where the latter carried on ship- building. About the time of the War of 1812 he was sent to Stockholm, Sweden, as super- cargo on a merchant vessel, and so took no part in the hostilities between this country and England. After his return home he was engaged in the grocery business for a few years, and subsequently, in partnership with Samuel Hale, was an extensive ship-owner. He was one of the Directors of the Piscataqua Bank; and it is curious to note that at one time, while he was a member of the board, the names of the nine Directors included but three Christian names. They were: Ichabod Rollins, Ichabod Bartlett, and Ichabod Good- win; William M. Shackford, William Stavers, and William H. F. Hacket; Sam- uel Hale, Samuel Lord, and Samuel E. Coues.
Ichabod Rollins died in 1873. His wife, who was a daughter of Michael and Mary (Brown) Hooker, was born on the homestead now occupied by their son, and was, with the exception of a few years, a lifelong resident there. Her father, who was born in England, came to America with his mother, and resided many years in Portsmouth. He was a well-to- do shipmaster, and it was he who built the house in which our subject now resides. He lived to be threescore and ten, and his remains were the first interred in the proprietors' cem- etery. His wife died in 1868. She was a native of Portsmouth, and the only child of John Brown, a Portsmouth man, who was of Scotch origin. She had five children, two daughters who died in childhood and three sons who attained maturity.
William Henry Rollins prepared for college under the tuition of William C. Harris. In 1837 he entered Harvard University; and, graduating in 1841, he entered the Ilarvard
Law School. He afterward finished his prep- aration for the legal profession in the office of Ichabod Bartlett. Admitted to the bar in 1844, he commenced practice in Ports- mouth, where he has been engaged in profes- sional work up to the present time. He was for a number of years President of the Ports- mouth Savings Bank, has been a Director of the Mechanics' and Traders' Bank, and for nineteen years has been Secretary and Treas- urer and President of the Athenaeum. Mr. Rollins was married in 1879 to Miss Mary Elizabeth Ball, of Portsmouth. In politics he has been a Republican since the formation of the party. He is a man of culture, and is highly respected in Portsmouth.
EONARD F. DEARBORN, of East Candia, a typical New Englander in the energy and thrift that has char- acterized his whole life, much of which has, however, been spent outside New England borders, was born here, October 27, 1837, son of Leonard and Jane (Dearborn) Dearborn. He is the eldest of a family of seven children, the mother of whom is still living, and possessed of clear faculties at the age of eighty-four years. But three of the sons survive, namely : Henry H., George F., both residents of Seattle, Wash. ; and Leon- ard F., of this sketch.
The genealogy of the Dearborn family is long and wide; but it is here purposed only to note briefly a few of the leading events in the life of Leonard F. Dearborn, who affirms that, in accordance with the established rule that the first-born inherits the qualities and capa- bilities of father and mother, whatever of success he may have attained or force of char- acter he may have developed in the affairs of life, were inherited from his parents, who pos- sessed in full measure the good old New Eng- land traits. Educated in the common school and engaged in farming up to 1861, Leonard F. Dearborn then enlisted, and entered service as a private in Company I, commanded by Captain William R. Patten, Eleventh New Hampshire Volunteers, under Colonel Walter Harriman. He was in the campaign of Fredericksburg, Vicksburg, and the siege of
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Knoxville, and during a part of the time had charge of the Commissary Department. He was honorably discharged in 1863. During the years immediately following his return from the war he was engaged in farming. In 1875 he purchased a place in Manchester, N. H., whither he removed, and was there en- gaged in the wood and vinegar business up to 1880.
Hle then migrated to the Pacific Coast, travelling from San Francisco by stage route through Northern California and Oregon to Portland, and thence by the Columbia River to Walla Walla, Wash. There he met Major- general O. O. Howard and General Tannett, and was invited to dine with them as a New England man, a New England man being a special object of interest in the New North-west in those days. General How- ard was at that time in command of the United States troops in Washington and Ore- gon ; and his topographical knowledge of that section, its natural resources and prospective future, which he freely imparted, proved of great value to his guest in after years. Mr. Dearborn's first investment there was the pur -. chase of three lots on Maine Street, Walla Walla. In June of that year he assisted in unloading from the boat the first railroad en- gine to arrive on the Pacific Coast division of the Northern Pacific Transcontinental Rail- road, at the junction of the Columbia and Snake Rivers. It is interesting to note in this connection that he rode on the first trans- continental train that ever entered Seattle. August 13 of the same year he purchased property with a frontage of six hundred feet on Seattle Bay. He drove the first piles driven on tide lands to deep water in Seattle, claiming the riparian rights, which were affirmed by the United States Supreme Court at Washington, D.C., in April, 1894. In the fall of 1880 he put on file a plat of what has since been known as Dearborn's First Addition to the city of Seattle, upon which stands the Seattle electric plant.
Returning to New Hampshire in the spring of 1881, he remained until May, 1883, when he again went to Seattle, built on the prin- cipal streets, and embarked in the real estate business, meanwhile building and making
other improvements on Dearborn's Addition. From 1884 to 1886 the women of Washington were granted the elective franchise at all elec- tions; and it was Mr. Dearborn's fortune to serve with a committee of women on con- duct of election, an experience that proved a revelation, in that intelligence, good sense, and the utmost harmony and good order obtained from first to last, so much so as to remind him of a New England Sabbath - an object lesson, as he declares, which dem- onstrates beyond a shadow of doubt the benign influence of women in politics On the Terri- tory becoming a State, suffrage was denied them; and, in West Point parlance, they re- main to-day "as they were," The year 1886 was an eventful one, the Chinese riots and their exodus marking an era long to be remembered on the Pacific Coast. A citizen was killed and several wounded just in front of Mr. Dearborn's office. Martial law was pro- claimed, and citizens assembled at the court- house, where arrangements were made for cer- tain of them to serve on guard duty day and night for nearly a week, the leading citizens finally raising funds by subscription, and send- ing nearly eight hundred of the Chinese to San Francisco.
During 1886 Mr. Dearborn projected the township of Somerville, a suburb of Seattle, a tract of land comprising several hundred acres, which he divided into five-acre lots. The owner, a resident of Somerville, Mass., caused the streets to be named after those of that city, with the exception of the main avenue, which appears on the map of Seattle and its suburbs as Dearborn Avenue. That same year, in company with Mr. Charles Waters, of Somerville, Mass., Mr. Dearborn prospected, opened, developed, and purchased coal mines on Green River, Washington, pay- ing the United States government the price of one hundred and sixty acres of land, being for mineral land twenty dollars per acre; and in the North-west, a magazine published at St. Paul, Minn., in an article descriptive of these mines, with a map of King County an- nexed, they are called the Dearborn Gas Coal Mines. They are now owned and operated by a New York company. In the summer of 1887 Mr. Dearborn returned to East Candia,
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N.H., where he now resides, his present am- bition being akin to that of General Grant after the war; namely, to see East Candia a thriving and populous community, himself an Alderman, with an influence potent enough to secure a paved sidewalk twelve rods from his home to the post-office.
Mr. Dearborn was married in 1860 to Mary C., the only child of Josiah M. and Mary Fitts. They have four children living, namely: Wilbur Freeman, Henry Irving, and Ralph Waldo, all of whom reside in Seattle, Wash. : and Arthur Leonard, the youngest living child, who has remained on the home place in Candia. Thomas C., the youngest child, died when but a few weeks old.
Mr. Dearborn was an early recipient of special honors from his townsmen. In 1860, at a meeting held at Candia village to raise funds for the Kansas sufferers, he was elected Chairman of the Committee; and at the Fourth of July celebration, 1861, he was the toast- master. He is a member of the Knights and Ladies of Honor; also of the D. B. Dudley Post, No. 79, Grand Army of the Republic, and in 1894 was on the staff of the Depart- ment Commander. He served on the Build- ing Committee in the erection of the Soldiers' Home, and at the dedication of the Soldiers' Monument was Chairman of the Committee of Five which made the arrangements, the entire charge of the details, making report, etc., de- volving upon Mr. Dearborn. The estimated
attendance was about thirty-five hundred.
The dedicatory service, to which about three hun- dred invitations were sent to former residents of Candia, was under the special charge of the Department Commander and staff; and all who took part in the exercises from speaker to committees were natives of Candia, the presentation of the monument to the town of Candia being by Governor Frederick Smith, of New Hampshire, and the speech of acceptance being from Mr. Dearborn. A full report ap- peared in a descriptive pamphlet published at the governor's expense, five hundred copies being gratuitously distributed by him.
On October 2, 1894, Company I, Eleventh New Hampshire Volunteers, members of D. B. Dudley Post, Grand Army of the Re- public, and many townspeople, by invitation
of Mr. Dearborn, assembled at his residence in East Candia in reunion, when out of forty- seven living comrades of Company I thirty- four were present, eighteen of whom were ac- companied by their wives. During the day two collations were served; and the festivities concluded in the evening with a literary pro- gram in the new Methodist church, which was used for the first time on that occasion, varied by martial music from the East Candia Band, and a camp fire enlivened by stories and reminiscences of army life. The unique and beautiful programs were furnished gratis by Comrade Henry W. Rowe, a Boston printer, member of Company I, and a native of Candia.
J ONATHAN THOMPSON, an enter- prising and successful farmer and an esteemed citizen of Nottingham, Rock- ingham County, N. H., was born in Durham, Strafford County, N. H., March 16, 1821, his parents being Levi and Cumford (Ellison) Thompson. His grandfather, also named Jonathan, was a native and a lifelong resident of Durham, where he was engaged in general agricultural pursuits. He was the father of five children, all of whom have now passed away. He lived to be but fifty years old, and his wife attained the age of three- score years and ten.
Levi was their eldest son. He was born at the old homestead in Durham, and in early life learned the trade of a ship carpenter, which he followed as an occupation for many years. In 1827, however, he removed to Not- tingham, where he purchased a farm of about one hundred acres, on which he remained a number of years, his last days being passed at the home of his son, the subject of this sketch. He was united in marriage with Miss Cumford Ellison, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Abraham Ellison, of Barrington, N. H. ; and to them were born a family of thirteen children, six of whom are still living; namely, Robert, Jonathan, Charles E., Mary J., Keziah Il., and Elizabeth. Robert married as his first wife Miss Sarah Rundlett, of Epping; and into their home one child came, Alvin by name.
Charles E. joined in wedlock with Miss
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Clara Reynolds, of Maine; and they became the parents of two children - Clara and Her- bert. Mary J. gave her hand in marriage to John Seward, late of Barrington, to whom she bore seven children - John F., Walter, Laura, Emma, Anderson, Charles, and Chester Mertie. Keziah H. is now the widow of Benjamin P. Harvey, a late resident of Not- tingham, and is the mother of the following six children : John W., Frank, Laura, George, Lewis, and Flora. Elizabeth is now the wife of Robert Lucy, of Nottingham, to whom she has borne four children ; namely, Fanny, Dora, Lizzie, and Lillia. Levi Thompson lived to the venerable age of eighty-nine years, and his wife attained to the only little less advanced age of eighty-four years She was a member of the Free Will Baptist church of Notting- ham; and, politically, he was a Jacksonian Democrat.
Jonathan Thompson, the second son of Levi, at the age of six years removed with his par- ents to Nottingham, in the public schools of which town he acquired his education. At the age of eighteen he learned the blacksmith's trade, in which he engaged for eight years. In 1840, when he was about nineteen years old, he purchased a farm of twelve acres in Not- tingham, to which he has since added at various times, until at present he possesses a landed property of one hundred and sixty acres. He is extensively occupied thereon in general husbandry, keeping regularly almost the whole extent under cultivation.
On May 26, 1844, he was joined in matri- mony with Miss Mary A. Doe, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Doc, of Lee, N. H. Seven children have been born to them, six of whom yet survive; namely, Joseph H., Susan J., Rose F., Charles H., Everett E., and Anson F. Joseph H. married Miss Sophia Jones, a daughter of Joseph Jones, of Nottingham, and they have been blessed in the birth of six children; namely, Nettic, Annie, Ilenry, Ella, Mamie, and Hattie. Susan, who was born July 28, 1846, was united in marriage with John A. Seward, of Strafford, Me., to whom she has borne two children - Nelson B. and Ella. Rose, who was born April 11, 1848, is now the wife of O. L. Osgood, and the mother of three chil-
dren ; namely, Bertha, George, and Annie. Charles, born February 20, 1850, wedded Miss Malissa Shute, daughter of Jerry Shute. They have one son living, named Willis. Everett, born April 29, 1855, was joined in wedlock with Miss Nellie Smith, a daughter of Stephen Smith; and their union has been fruitful in the birth of three children - Fred J., Jessie, and Mary. Anson, who was born April 28, 1857, married Miss Lillian Smith, and is the father of three children - Harry, Mattie, and Maud.
Mr. Thompson is widely known, and he enjoys the esteem and confidence of his fellow- citizens. He has served his town in the capacity of Selectman for the period of two years. In national politics he is affiliated with the Republican party. Religiously, both he and his wife are members of the Free Will Baptist church of Nottingham, of which he is justly reputed to be one of the pillars.
AMES E. GERRISH, a general farmer, resident of Northwood, N. H., was born in the adjoining town of Notting- ham, N. H., June 2, 1846. His father, Samuel Gerrish, was born in the town of Deerfield, which, as well as Northwood, was formerly a part of Nottingham. He was the son of Samuel, Sr., and Sally (Knowlton) Gerrish. His grandfather and his father were both farmers and lifelong residents of Rock- ingham County. Samuel Gerrish, the second of the name, and his wife, whose maiden name was Martha Allard, reared three chil- dren -- Elizabeth, Charles B., and James E.
The subject of this sketch commenced work in a shoe factory in young manhood, and fol- lowed the trade in addition to farming a num- ber of years. In 1886 he located in Beverly, Mass., where he purchased land and built a residence, which he still owns, and which he occupied till 1890, when he returned to North- wood, and located on his present homestead. His wife was before marriage Miss Fannie Campbell, of North Reading, Mass. She is a daughter of Warren A. and Charlotte S. (Dickey) Campbell. On both paternal and maternal sides she is a descendant of Scotch- Irish settlers of Londonderry, and her mother
COFFIN M. FRENCH.
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is a grand-daughter of General John Stark of Revolutionary fame. Mr. and Mrs. Gerrish have two children - Samuel W. and Lottie F. Samuel W. married Miss Annie M. Hoyt, of North wood.
AMES W. WATSON, a prominent farmer and an estimable citizen of Exeter, was born in Exeter, February 23, 1827, his parents being John and Betsy (Gilman) Watson. John Watson also was a native of Rockingham County, who in early life followed the occupation of chair- making. He subsequently purchased a farm in Exeter, and there resided for the remainder of his life, engaged in general farming and a: profitable wood business. He and his wife, Betsy, who was a daughter of Deacon Chase Gilman, of Epping, this county, were blessed in the birth of fifteen children. Of these, twelve grew to maturity, and ten are still living ; namely, Elizabeth, James W., Charles, Sarah, Joel, Daniel, Dudley, Mary, Almira, and George. Sarah is now the wife of John J. Gasper, of California, at one time acting governor of Arizona. Daniel and Dudley were twins. Mary, Almira, and George are married and well-to-do. The father's life was industrious down to his decease, which occurred in 1882. The mother, who was highly esteemed, preceded him to the grave by several years.
James W. Watson spent the years of his boyhood and youth on the paternal farm. The educational advantages available to him in the district where he lived having been rather limited, he subsequently studied at Hampton Falls Academy, and later at a private school in Exeter. He then applied himself to the acquirement of the mason's trade, and after- ward followed it as an occupation for fifty years. Twenty years of that time were spent in Boston, after which, in 1886, he returned to his native home.
Here, purchasing the farm adjoining that on which he was born, he engaged in agri- culture, at the same time working at his trade as the opportunity offered. The estate, forty acres in extent, has neat and substantial farm buildings, indicative of enterprise and prosper-
ity. Many of the improvements were made by Mr. Watson. In 1860 Mr. Watson was united in marriage with Miss Jane O. Leach, a native of the State of Vermont. They have had one daughter, who died in infancy. Mr. Watson does not seek social or political emi- nence. He is, however, identified with the general interests of Exeter, and is a familiar personality in its gatherings. He is affiliated with the brotherhood of Masons. In national politics he is found in the ranks of the Re- publican party. Mr. Watson is not a member of any religious organization, while his wife is in fellowship with the Methodist Episcopal church of Exeter.
OHN PILLSBURY FRENCH, one of the leading farmers of Candia, was born in this town, September 14, 1826, son of Coffin M. and Dolly (Pillsbury) French. The first ancestor of his family in America was Edward French, who was in Ips- wich, Mass., in 1636, settled in Salisbury in 1640, ' and died there in 1674. Joseph French, a tailor of Salisbury, son of Edward, was the next in this line. His son, Joseph, second, born in 1654, married in 1678 Sarah Eastman, and died in 1683. Their son, Joseph, third, born in 1679, married De- cember 20, 1699, Abigail Brown. Joseph, fourth, son of Joseph, third, born February 27, 1702, married July 22, 1731, Ruth Knowles.
Simon French, son of the fourth Joseph, and a representative of the sixth generation from the emigrant Edward, was born in Salis- bury, October 27, 1740, and settled in Candia, N.H., in 1764. He died August 3, 1823. His first wife was a daughter of John Shack- ford, Sr., of Chester, and his second wife, Comfort Weeks, the widow of Dr. Moore. His children, all by his first marriage, were: Ruth, who married Samuel Colby ; Dolly, who married Andrew Rankin; and John, the grand- father of the special subject of this biographi- cal sketch.
John French, who was born in Candia, March 25, 1770, conducted a farm located near the property of his grandson during the greater part of his active life. He was an
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energetic and prosperous farmer and a useful citizen, who always enjoyed the esteem and good will of his neighbors. He and his fam- ily attended the Congregational church. Hc died December 24, 1845, aged seventy-five years. John French married Comfort Moore, daughter of Dr. Moore, a native of Stratham, N.II., and reared a family of five children, briefly mentioned as follows: Martha, born in 1794, died in 1811; Simon, born February 2, 1796, married Ann Evans, and lived on the homestead, died May 25, 1871, leaving one child, Mary A .; Coffin Moore, born April 6, 1799, lived near the homestead; Lucinda, born in 1803, married Frederick Fitts; Eve- lina, born in 1805, married Samuel Murry.
Immediately after his marriage Coffin M. French settled upon the farm which his son, John P., now owns and occupies ; and his long and useful life was passed in tilling the soil and serving his fellow-townsmen. He was a member of the Board of Selectmen for several years, some of the time acting as Chairman. He died in 1881, aged eighty-two years. In politics he was in his latter years a Repub- lican, and in his religious views he was a Congregationalist, being a Deacon of that church for many years. His wife, who was before marriage Dolly Pillsbury, was a native of Hanover, N.H. She became the mother of four children, all of whom are living; namely, John Pillsbury, Mary Celina, Sam- uel Franklin, and George Henry. Mary Celina, born May 6, 1832, married the Rev. James II. Fitts. Samuel Franklin, born De- cember 22, 1835, married Martha J. Upton, of Andover, Mass., December 22, 1864. He is a graduate of Dartmouth College and An- dover Theological Seminary. George Henry, born July 27, 1838, was graduated at Dart- mouth College and Andover Theological Semi- nary, married Fannie E. Kilburn, of Holden, Mass., September 28, 1871. Their children are: Warren Kilburn, born September 15, 1873, who graduated at Dartmouth College in 1895; Irving Joseph, born March 5, 1875; and George Franklin, born April 27, 1879, representing the tenth generation of this branch of the French family in America.
John P. French was educated in the com- mon schools of Candia and Pembroke Acad-
emy, which he attended for three terms. After leaving school, he assisted in carrying on the home farm; and, succeeding to the ownership of the property after his father's death, he has since conducted it with unusual thrift and energy, advancing steadily in pros- perity until the present day. He owns one hundred and fifty acres of desirable land, one hundred and twenty-five acres of which is di- vided into pasture and woodland; and he cuts about forty tons of hay yearly, besides raising other farm products. He keeps an average of ten head of young stock, six cows, three horses, and cultivates his farm according to the most approved methods. The present residence, which was erected by his father, together with the other buildings, are kept in the best of repair, giving his premises a neat and thrifty appearance; and his comfortable circumstances are the result of careful man- agement and a judicious application of every resource at his command.
Mr. French's first wife, Edee Knight, of Atkinson, N.H., whom he married in 1861, died two years later. His present wife was before marriage Mary E. Craig, of Auburn, Mass. Mrs. French's mother is still living; and, although she has reached the age of eighty-three years, she sews without the aid of glasses, threading her own needle. She is at present working upon what will prove to be a very handsome silk quilt. Mrs. Craig pos- sesses all her mental faculties, but has sus- tained some bodily injuries from the effects of a fall, and is now unable to walk.
Aspiration to political prominence is not a part of Mr. French's nature; and, aside from casting his vote in support of the Republican party, he takes no part in politics. What leisure time he has at his disposal he prefers to devote to church work, having faithfully served as a Deacon of the Congregational church for twenty years; and he is also the superintendent of the Sunday-school.
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