USA > New Hampshire > Grafton County > Book of biographies. This volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Grafton County, New Hampshire > Part 4
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Albert Pinneo was raised on the farm where he was born, and has since lived; until the age of twenty-three, he spent much of his time in obtaining an education, attending the district schools, and employing two years very profita- bly in Kimball Union Academy at Meriden, N. H. Before finishing his schooling he had clerked one year for an uncle in Compton, Can- ada. When he left the Academy he taught one term of school, before he took up farming in earnest on the farm, where he has been located since; the farm comprises 155 acres, and is given up to dairy-farming, and to the raising of fruit.
Mr. Pinneo became a married man January, 1874, his nuptials with Mary A. Cross of Hart- ford, Vt., being consummated at that date; she was a daughter of Thomas W. Cross, who mar- ried Mary Lord. Our subject's union has re- sulted in the birth of four children, all of whom are living: Fred; Charles, who lives at Leba- non, N. H., where he is employed as a cutter in an overall factory; Laura; and Henry. Our subject and his estimable wife, a true and ever faithful helpmate, are both members of Graf- ton Star Grange of Hanover. Politically he is a Republican, and wields no small amount of in- fluence among the voters of Hanover. He has
been President for three years of the Republican Club of the town, and is now the incumbent. He has held a number of the town offices, among which are those of ballot clerk, road agent, se- lectman since March, 1896, and a member of the school board for four years, during all of which period he has been treasurer, and chair- man for two years.
The family were pioneers in the fruit rais- ing in this township. Joseph, his uncle, had a nursery on his farm.
JOHN W. CHANDLER, who is engaged in farming near Prospect Hill, was born on Chandler Hill, near the center of the town of Hanover, Nov. 16, 1823. He is a son of Cyrus and Lucy (Davis) Chandler.
The first American ancestor of the Chandler family was William Chandler, who, with Annis, his wife, came from England in 1637, settling at Roxbury, Mass., where he was a small land- owner. He was a church member, and a very good citizen. He died of consumption Nov. 26, 1641.
Of six children born to William and Annis Chandler, four of whom were born in England, Deacon John was the fifth. He married Eliza- beth Douglas on the sixteenth of February, 1658; she was born in Woodstock, Conn., in 1640, and died July 23, 1705, at New London, Conn. She was a daughter of William Douglas and his wife Anna (Mattle), a daughter of Thomas Mattle of Ringstead, Northampton, England. William Douglas was governor of the colony of New London, Conn. Deacon John Chandler served as selectman many years, and was moderator in 1694, according to the town records. He was a Deacon in the church of Rev. Josiah Dwight. Deacon John Chandler died April 15, 1703, aged 68 years.
The son of the preceding, Judge John Chand- ler, married Mary Raymond of Woodstock, Conn. She was born in New London, Conn., March 12, 1671 or 1672. Judge John Chandler was a prominent and representative man of his dlay; he was the first Judge of Probate of Wor- cester County. He received a license to keep a house of entertainment. He was appointed town surveyor April 3, 1703. He served as
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, GRAFTON COUNTY.
Captain, Major, and as Colonel in the militia, and was Major in the Indian War of 1722. He was representative in the General Court, held in Boston in 1711; in 1724-25 he served as repre- sentative sixty-nine days, for which he receipt- ed for pay in the sum of £15: 8: o.
Judge Chandler's son, William, was the father of William J. Chandler, who was one of the first settlers in the town of Hanover, coming from Pomfrey, Conn. He took up a tract of land on the hill, to which he gave his name; there he cleared a farm, and lived to the good old age of ninety years. His first marriage was with a Miss Grosvenor; his second was with a Miss Hill; and his third with Eunice Tenny, the grandmother of our subject.
Cyrus Chandler was born on the homestead on Chandler's Hill, and followed farming throughout the active period of his life. His wife, Lucy Davis, was a daughter of Bezaliel and Mary (Wright) Davis; the father of Mrs. Chandler was a farmer; he died prior to 1823, about 63 or 64 years of age. There were born to our subject's parents seven children, of whom the five living are: Bezaliel D. died at 65 years; William G. living at Hartford; Edwin C. resid- ing at Lebanon; John W., the subject of this sketch; Lucy D., who married Nathaniel , P. Merrill, and lives at Aetna; and Cyrus C., who makes his home in Enfield; Edwin C., first, who died in infancy.
John W. Chandler was reared on the Chand- ler homestead on Chandler's Hill, and attended the district schools during his youth, until he was eighteen, when the family moved to Aetna village. After a few years stay there they went to Norwich, Vt., where they resided five or six years; the family finally located in Hartford, Vt., where the parents died, the father at the age of seventy-six, and the mother at the age of sixty-nine. Our subject remained with his pa- rents until he was thirty years old, when he mar- ried, and began farming for himself, renting a farm for one year near the village of Aetna, and one in Sharon, Vt., for a year. Mr. Chandler then purchased a farm in the town of Hanover, at the foot of Lord's Hill, and lived there twenty- nine years. In January, 1885, he bought his present farmi of 115 acres, and lias since been engaged in carrying on general farming, be- sides running a dairy of from ten to twelve cows.
Mr. Chandler was married April 2, 1854, in the village of Aetna, to Julia L. Dewey, who was born in Williamstown, Vt., of William and Mary (Fish) Dewey. Three children have been born to our subject and his wife: William Dewey; and Lucy M. and Mary E., both deceased. Our subject was a Deacon in the Baptist Church of Aetna village. In politics he is a Republican, as is his son.
William Dewey Chandler was born on the farm near Lord's Hill Feb. 9, 1857, and was reared in the town of Hanover, attending its district school. He is now living with his father, and assisting him in carrying on the farm. He was married July 4, 1885, in Hanover, to Katherine F. Mason, daughter of Julius J. and Lydia (Chandler) Mason. Julius J. Mason was a son of Stephen and Eunice (Hazen) Mason. Lydia Chandler was a daughter of Laban and Lydia (True)Chandler, and a granddaughter of William and Eunice (Tenny) Chandler, the grandparents of our subject. To William D. Chandler and his wife four children have been born: Lucy M .; Edwin C .; Julius M .; and Edith May.
FRANKLIN P. CURRIER, a leading, well- to-do farmer of Haverhill, N. H., was born in Enfield, July 12, 1830. He is a son of Chellis and Susan (Foster) Currier, and grandson of Richard Currier.
Richard Currier came as one of the first set- tlers of Enfield, from Southampton, Mass .; the family came from England originally. The grandfather of our subject was a soldier in the Revolutionary War, and drew a pension till his death. The old home, where he kept an inn for travelers in Enfield, is still standing. Richard Currier died about the year 1835 or 1836.
Chellis Currier was one of a family of two boys and two girls, and was probably born in Enfield; he followed the pursuit of agriculture through his life. Very quiet and reserved in manners, never taking an active interest in pol- itics, so far as running for an office, yet he was a loyal Democrat. In religious belief he was a Universalist, and a man of exceptionally good morals. Susan Foster, his wife, was one of a
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, GRAFTON COUNTY.
family of five boys and one girl, born in Hano- ver, to Richard Foster. Her mother was a Miss Greeley, a cousin of Horace Greeley. The union of Mr. Currier and Susan Foster was pro- lific of the following seven children: James A., deceased; George W. lives at Enfield; John lives at Danville, Vt .; Sarah Eliza lives at Enfield; Harriet E. is deceased; Franklin Pettingill is the subject of this short notice; Lucy Ann married Charles Titus and lives at Lebanon.
Our subject made his home in Enfield until his marriage, when about 34 years old; his edu- cation was secured in the common district schools, and in a one year's course in the Canaan Union Academy of Canaan, N. H. When nearly twenty-one he hired out to his brother, who was managing the home farm, after which he and his brother bought the property of their father, and for ten years carried on the farm in partnership, the old folks living with them in retirement. Then Franklin P. sold his share of the farm, went to Haverhill, and entered the tanning business. For about eight years he fol- lowed tanning at "The Brook," and when it was destroyed by fire, he bought his farm, where he now resides; it is made up of 200 acres lying · between the river and the hills back of it.
Mr. Currier was married Jan. I. 1861, at Bos- ton, to Missouri E., daughter of David and Eliza (Whitmore) Whitmore; Miss Whitmore was born in St. Louis, Mo. David Whitmore, a son of Anthony Whitmore, was born in New- buryport, Mass .; Eliza Whitmore was a daugh- ter of David Whitmore, Jr. To Mr. and Mrs. Currier were born three children: Norma Cut- ter married Leslie P. Snow, whose first wife was Susan Eliza, the second daughter of our subject; Susan Eliza bore her husband two chil- dren before her death, who were named: Con- rad E., now aged seven years; and Leslie F., aged six years; Mr. Snow lives in Rochester, N. H .; Anzolette Austin married Timothy Blanchard of Menzana, Cal. Mrs. Currier is a member of the Congregational Church. In pol- itics Mr. Currier is a Democrat, and has served as selectman for two years, and has also been a member of the school committee. He is a member of Haverhill Grange, No. 212. He is thorough-going and honest in all of his deal- ings, and is well entitled to the great respect in which he is held.
MOSES E. WITHINGTON, a prosperous farmer, living near Hanover, N. H., was born in the above town Jan. 31, 1828. He is a son of Francis and Joanna (Fitts) Withington, and grandson of Elias and Mary (McKean) Withing- ton.
Our subject's grandfather is descended from one of three brothers, who landed in Boston in early colonial times. Elias was born in Hen- niker, and lived to the age of seventy-two, be- ing engaged in farming all of his life. His son, Francis, our subject's father, was born in Hen- niker, N. H., and was sixteen years old when he came to the town of Hanover, where he fol- lowed his calling of a farmer until his death in the month of October, 1871, aged seventy-five years. He was ever a supporter of the Demo- cratic Party, and took his turn with his neigh- bors in serving on the school committee, and in road surveying. He reared seven children, who were christened: Oscar R .; Moses E., the sub- ject of this notice; Ephraim F .; Richard W .; Rhoda Ann; Lorinda C .; and Convers F. Of this family the only survivors are Moses E. and Lorinda.
The mother of our subject was born in Dor- chester, N. H., of Richard and Mary (Powell) Fitts, the latter of whom was born in Henniker, N. H., Dec. 13, 1796. The first member of the Fitts family in America was Robert Fitts, who, with his wife, Grace D., came from Fitzford, Tavistock, Devon, England, in 1635, settling first in the colony of Ipswich, removing from there to Salisbury, of which town he was one of the original settlers; he died in Ipswich, to which he returned to pass his declining years. He was a man of superior education and high social standing, like many of the early Puritans, and was held in high esteem for his exceptional integrity. Abraham Fitts, his son, married Sa- rah Thompson, and became the father of the next in the line of descent to our subject, Rich- ard Fitts, Sr. Richard Fitts was born Feb. 26, 1672, and married Sarah Thorne Jan. 16, 1891. His father conveyed to him all of his property in Salisbury, where Richard removed to, and there built himself a block house to protect his family from Indian raids. Richard Fitts, Jr., was born Jan. 20, 1705, married Sarah Brown April 16, 1727, and died Feb. 23, 1791. His wife was a daughter of Ephraim and Lydia
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, GRAFTON COUNTY.
Brown, and was born Sept. 14, 1708. Their son, Ephraim Fitts, was born May 10, 1745, and died April 13, 1800; he was a soldier of the Revolution, being drafted from Chester; after the war he settled in South Hampton, where he be- came a prominent citizen. He was a tithing- man for three years, and held many other offices for longer and shorter periods. He was a blacksmith by trade. He was married Aug. 20, 1765, to Rhoda Worthen of Chester, N. H. Among their children was Richard Fitts, the father of our subject's mother; he was born Feb. 22, 1770, and died Oct. 6, 1835. He was one of the first settlers of Dorchester, N. H., settling there about 1791 ; in 1804 he went to Enfield, N. H., and still later he changed his residence to East Hanover, moving his goods with the aid of an ox team ten or twelve miles on the cele- brated cold Friday, Jan. 19, 1810, without an overcoat over him.
Moses E. Withington was brought up on his father's farm on the east side of Moose Moun- tain in the town of Hanover, and remained un- der the parental roof until he was thirty-two, when he married, and set up an establishment of his own. He attended the district schools un- til he was twenty and then began to work out on the neighboring farms as a farm-hand. For ten years he was engaged in lumbering; he would purchase wood lots, cut the timber, and sell it. After his marriage he lived three years in Canaan, carrying on a lumbering business; he then went to Enfield, where he lived eighteen years, making his home on a small tract, and working out on farms, and in the woods. In 1881 Mr. Withington came to his present home, a farm consisting of 300 acres, given up to dairy- farming, and supporting from fifteen to twenty cows.
Mr. Withington took upon himself the mar- riage vows April 21, 1859, being united with Juliana C. Dwinels in the town of Canaan, her birthplace. Mrs. Withington is a daughter of James and Louisa (Crane) Dwinels, both of whom were from Hillsboro, where they were born and married. Of the five children born to them Juliana was the eldest. James Dwinels was a son of Jonathan and Rachel (Russell) Dwinels; Jonathan Dwinels was in the War of 1812, and his wife drew a pension after his death. Louisa Crane, Mrs. Withington's mother, was a daugh-
ter of Dr. Joshua Crane of Hillsboro. Mrs. Withington is a member of the Grange. They are both attendants of the M. E. Church. Mrs. Withington is a member of the Good Samaritan always been a Democrat, but has never accepted any office.
James Frank Withington, the only child, and son of our subject and his wife, married Annie Tinney, daughter of Philo and Augusta (Wright) Tinney, and is the father of five children, as fol- lows: Julia Augusta; Stella Tinney; John Dur- kee; Robert Dyke; and Dean Elmer. Frank is a member of Grafton Star Grange, No. 60.
ANDREW J. PIKE, an engineer on the B. & M. R. R., was born in Haverhill, N. H., Oct. 17, 1855. His father was Samuel Pike; he was born in Hebron. He and his wife, Mary S. (Jeffers) Pike, who was born in Benton, are still living in Lisbon, N. H., at the advanced ages of 82 and 79 years.
Our subject attended the common schools, and Haverhill Academy, finishing his education at the age of 17, with three terms of school in Newbury Academy. His parents were not in particularly comfortable circumstances, so An- drew was forced to support himself from an ex- tremely early age. From the time he was nine till he was sixteen years of age, he worked on a farm for $2 per month; at the latter age, he went to Bristol, and secured work in a carriage factory, where he labored three years, attend- ing winter school in the Academy. He then engaged in the meat business one year in New- bury. Mr. Pike married his first wife at the age of 21, and moved to Ossipee, where he en- tered upon the manufacture of carriages in part- nership with Charles Wiggins, continuing in the business for eighteen months. His next en1- ployment lasted nine months, during which time he performed the duties of trackman for the . Eastern branch of the Eastern Railroad, from . Portland to North Conway. Montpelier, Vt., became his next place of residence, running a stationary engine there for the Granite Works, until sickness compelled him to relinquish the situation. He returned to Haverhill, when he had recovered his health, and fired on the B. & M. R. R. for a period extending a little over
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, GRAFTON COUNTY.
ence to the heavenly summons at the age of seventy-five, in 1838. Twelve children were born to them; among those who grew up to maturity were the following: Ezra, Betsey, Sabrina, and Lydia.
Ezra Sanger, our subject's father, was born in St. Johnsbury, Vt., in 1804, and when a young man entered the store of John Clark as his clerk, and later opened a store of his own in the Center Village as the first merchant of the village. Upon his removal to Troy, Vt., he sold his business and entered upon the manufacture of potash and shoes in his new home, besides running a store of general merchandise; it was during this period that Dr. Sanger was born. In 1834 Ezra Sanger sold his interests and moved to Honeoye Falls, N. Y., where he identified himself in the mer- cantile life of that place till his death in 1840 oi consumption. His wife, Sarah M. Brown, who was an adopted daughter of John Clark, her parents having died when she was a child, bore Mr. Sanger the following children: Maria, Ellen, Thaddeus E., Mary Ann, and Benjamin. Our subject's mother married as her second husband Thomas Gleason, and was blessed with one child, Fanny; Mrs. Gleason finally departed this life at the age of fifty, with a complaint of lung trouble. Ezra Sanger was a Whig in poli- tics, as was his father before him, but never felt inclined to run for any office. He was liberal in his religious views. Sarah Brown Sanger was a granddaughter of John Ide, who was a soldier in a Massachusetts regiment in the Revolution. Her grandfather on her father's side, John Brown, was also a soldier of the Revolution.
Dr. Sanger's early education was obtained in the common schools of the town in which he lived; he then entered St. Johnsbury Academy and finished the course at the age of eighteen, going from there to Toledo, Ohio, where he taught school for a time. Soon after he accepted a situation as a clerk in a drug store; there he first applied himself seriously to the study of his profession, and availed himself of every chance moment of time, even breaking in on needed hours for rest to further his knowledge in the theory of the healing art. After two years of well-employed time in the drug store he attended medical lectures in Philadelphia, and then put himself under the direction of Drs. Stone and Sanborn of St. Johnsbury, Vt. He also studied
medicine in the office of Dr. Darling at Lyndon, Vt. Backed by his powerful will and assisted in his study by his well-formed trait of persever- ance, he made rapid progress, and soon entered the Homeopathic College at Philadelphia, from which he graduated in 1856 and located im- mediately at Hardwick, Vt., where he remained two years, coming from there to Littleton, July 12, 1858, with a reputation already established. His long and varied practice since in Littleton and its vicinity has developed into one of the best, both from a financial and a professional standpoint.
He can claim the distinction of being the first physician of the Homeopathic School in North- ern New Hampshire, and what might be termed a pioneer in that system in this section of the State. From the beginning of his professional career he evinced great enthusiasm in his chosen line of work, exhibiting in more than one way his marked fitness as a physician. His reputa- tion as a skillful and generally successful prac- titioner was readily established and soon brought him to be consulted in critical cases by both members of the allopathic and homeopathic schools; he is frequently called in consultation throughout Northern New Hampshire and Northern Vermont, and sustains a high reputa- tion among the leading members of the medical fraternity in the State.
His professional connections have led him to become a member of various medical organiza- tions, in which he has as a rule taken a promi- nent part. In 1870 he became a member of the American Institution of Homeopathy. Since 1865 he has been a member of the New Hamp- shire Medical Society, and has held many of the important offices, such as censor for fifteen years, vice-president in 1876-77, president for the years 1878-79-80. The honorary degree of "Doctor of Homeopathic Medicine" was bestowed upon him in 1867, in recognition of his ability and ser- vices. In 1871 he was appointed by the general Government to the position of pension surgeon , for the United States Pension Bureau, and held that post until the advent of Cleveland's Admin- istration, when he resigned. It was mainly due to his energetic efforts that the Connecticut Valley Homeopathie Medical Society of North- ern New Hampshire was organized; he was elected to the office of its president for two years.
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, GRAFTON COUNTY.
At the present time he is medical examiner for the Knights of Honor and the Provident Mutual Association of New Hampshire.
Free Masonry has claimed much of his time and attention, not otherwise devoted to his pro- fession; he joined the Burns Lodge at Littleton, Dec. 7, 1870; received the Chapter Degree, Franklin Chapter of Lisbon, in 1881; was made Knight Templar of the St. Girard Commandery, Jan. 23, 1882; took Council degrees at Omega Council, Plymouth, Feb. 1I, 1884; and received the thirty-second degree of the Scottish Rite at the Valley of Nashua, Dec. 21, 1885. He has beld in the past and still holds important Masonic offices. In 1871 he was Junior Warden, Senior Warden in 1872-73, Warder of the Command- ery in 1882, Captain-General in 1883, Eminent Commander from 1884 to 1891, Grand Captain of the Guard of the Grand Commander of the State in 1884, and Grand Warder in 1885. He was Master of the Burns Lodge, F. & A. M., in 1890, and Grand Commander of the State in 1892.
The remarkable success with which Dr. Sanger lias met is a good index of what can be achieved by pursuing a definite aim in life. Distinction and an honored name have come to him by reason of his natural talents, his even and genial tem- per, and a life unremitting in its application to the work he took in hand. The first five years of his medical experience was not altogether calm sailing, but he established in that time a character for his system from an adverse start- ing point, and a place for himself as a physician and as a surgeon, worthy of the highest com- mendation. He is conceded to be an authority for the Homeopathic School in Northern New Hampshire. His admirable personal qualities have attached to him a large and respectable body of adherents. In his battles with human ills and infirmities he is cool and sagacious and most persistent in his belief in the dogma of his school-like cures like. His earnestness and evident sincerity, combined with successful re- sults, have inspired a confidence in the worth of homeopathy, and have converted many to his faith, and under this inspiration he now enjoys a lucrative and satisfactory practice, as he has done from the early days of his professional career.
His quick and brilliant intellect, his clearness
of perception, his ready wit and repartee, his un- varying good nature and fine conversational powers make him a general favorite among all classes, and a welcome guest at the fireside and in the social circle.
Dr. Sanger was joined in the holy bond of marriage, Oct. 29, 1856, to Miss Ianthe C. Knee- land, daughter of Willard Hall and Clara (Woods) Kneeland of Victory, Vt. Mr. Knee- land was for many years a prominent farmer of that town and of the town of Waterbury, and owned valuable lumber mills, but on his retire- ment he moved to Littleton, N. H., where he died in 1875, at the age of seventy, having been born in Waterbury in 1805. His wife, who was born in Barnet, Vt., in 1810, departed this life in 1892. She was a granddaughter of Capt. John Ide, who served in Rhode Island in the Revolu- tion, and granddaughter of John Woods, who served in New Hampshire and Massachusetts during the same war. There were born to Mr. and Mrs. Kneeland four children: Samuel P., Ianthe C., Ellen, and Ireneus. Willard H. Knee- land was a son of Richard Kneeland, the second, who was born in Westford, Mass., in 1778, grandson of Richard Kneeland, the first, born in Boston in 1752, and great-grandson of John Kneeland, the fifth, who was born in Boston in 1694. This John Kneeland was the celebrated Boston builder and real estate owner after whom Kneeland Street and Kneeland Wharf were named, and who constructed the ever-memorable "Old South Church" in Boston. John Kneeland was the son of John Kneeland, the fourth, who was born in Boston in 1668, grandson of John Kneeland, the third, born in Boston in 1632, great-grandson of John Kneeland, the second, born in Scotland in 1600. He came to America in 1632 and settled in Boston. He was a son of Capt. John Kneeland, the first, who was born in Scotland in 1565, married Mary Dunbar in 1598, and died at sea in 1635.
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