USA > New Hampshire > Grafton County > Book of biographies. This volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Grafton County, New Hampshire > Part 43
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In Masonic rites he is a member of the Frank- lin Lodge, F. & A. M., No. 6; St. Andrews Chapter, No. 1; Washington Council, No. 10; Mt. Horeb Commandery; and the Mystic Shrine of Montpelier. In his religious views he is a Unitarian. We take pleasure in presenting his portrait on a preceding page.
LAWRENCE K. FORD, conductor on the B. & M. R. R., residing in Woodsville, N. H., was born May 19, 1857, in Lyman, N. H., where he attended school until about eight years of age, and worked as brakeman on the railroad dur- ing the summer vacations till he was fifteen. His efficient and capable service in the employ of the railroad soon advanced him to the posi- tion of freight conductor, and then to that of
baggage master. An intermission in his rail- roading of two and a half years was utilized in farming; in 1880 he resumed his work on the railroad, and acted as brakeman for one year, and as freight conductor for five years; since 1886 he has been a passenger conductor.
Mr. Ford is a son of Samuel P. and Jane E. (Kelsea) Ford, grandson of Robert and Zelinda (Snow) Ford, and a great-grandson of John Ford. A son of John Ford was a captain in the Revolution. When conducting his company of minutemen to the Battle of Bunker Hill, he passed with his men a church, where services were being held, and was invited to enter by the dominie; "No, thank you," rejoined the captain, "we have more important business on hand." Zelinda Snow, the wife of Robert Ford, was a daughter of James Snow. The mother of our subject was a daughter of William, Jr., and Bet- sey (Kimball) Kelsea, the former a son of Will- iam, Sr., and Phoebe (Ladd) Kelsea, and the latter a daughter of Jonathan and Betsey (Noyes) Kimball, and a granddaughter on her father's side of Benjamin Kimball. There were born to Lawrence K. Ford's parents three children, as follows: Lawrence K .; George Edward, of Ellensburgh, Wash .; Mary A., the widow of Gen. Samuel C. Armstrong, the promoter of the Hampton School for the industrial and literary training of negroes and Indians at Hampton, Virginia.
Mr. Ford was married May 24, 1885, at Woodsville, to Myra Weare, who was born in Dalton, N. H., of Daniel C. and Rebecca (Hub- bard) Weare. Daniel C. Weare was a son of Nathaniel and Alice Weare, and was born in Whitefield, N. H., May 8, 1834. Rebecca Hub- bard is a daughter of Betsey (Messer) Hubbard. The children composing the family of Daniel C. Weare were: Ellera L., born to him by his first wife; Mary, the wife of our subject; and Daniel F., who lives in Whitefield, N. H.
Mrs. Ford is an attendant of the M. E. Church, and actively interested in its beneficent work. Mr. Ford is a member of the Kane Lodge, F. & A. M., No. 64; Franklin Chapter, No. 5: Omega Council, No. 9; St. Girard Commandery of K. T .; Edw. A. Raymond Consistory. He is also a member of the Order of Railway Conductors at Lindenville, Vt. He is a steadfast Democrat in his political affiliations.
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, GRAFTON COUNTY.
GEORGE A. DIMOND of Woodsville, N. H., locomotive engineer on the B. & M. R. R., was born in Dorchester, N. H., Aug. 5, 1857; he is a son of John Q. A. and Lavina (Merrill) Dimond, and a grandson of John Dimond. John Dimond was a farmer by occupation, and died in the neighborhood of the year 1860, at about seventy years of age. He came from the town of Loudon, and married Mehitabel Dimond. His son, John Q. A. Dimond, was born in Loudon and adopted the trade of a carpenter in connec- tion with his occupation of a farmer. He lived the latter portion of his life in Dorchester, and died there in 1866. His wife, who was born in Dorchester, and died in Gratton in 1892, was a daughter of John Merrill and Sarah Matthews. The former was born in Dorchester and was en- gaged throughout life in the pursuit of agricul- ture, dying at seventy-five years of age in 1867. The latter was born in Dorchester, and was a daughter of John and Sallie Matthews. Four children were born to our subject's parents, as follows: Charles A .; George A .; Lorine M. died in infancy; and Clara L., who married Louis Hall of West Rumney, N. H.
George A. Dimond lived at Dorchester until ten years of age, attending school quite regu- larly. After his father's death his mother moved to West Rumney, where our subject went to school every winter till he attained his majority; in the summer he worked on the farm, and drove a milk wagon. After becoming of age he worked three years on a farm and then secured a position on the railroad as fireman; he fired for five years till 1886, when he was given an engine. He was on a passenger run for one season, but much pre- fers the freight service. He has never been hurt, although he has been mixed up in two collisions.
Mr. Dimond married, July 29, 1888, at Woods- ville, Nancy (Caldon) Ordway, a native of Camp- ton, N. H. Her father was Thomas Caldon; he was born in Meredith, N. H., and died in 1876. Her mother was Sarah Bailey, a native of Camp- ton. Mrs. Dimond attends the M. E. Church. Our subject is a Mason. and is a member of Moosehillock Lodge. No. 63, F. & A. M .; Pemi- gewasset Chapter, No. 13; Omega Council, No. 9; and St. Gerard Commandery of Knights Tem- plar. He is a member of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engincers. Tahanto Division, No. 335. He is a Democrat.
MAURICE E. KIMBALL, a prominent mer- chant of North Haverhill, was born in North Haverhill, Oct. 24, 1843; he is a son of Charles and Hannah (Morris) Kimball, grandson of Caleb and Sallie (Hall) Kimball, and great- grandson of Thomas and Mary (Willoughby) Kimball.
Thomas Kimball was a manufacturer by occu- pation, and spent most of his time engaged in agricultural pursuits ; he was also a manufacturer of the old mould-board ploughs. He died about 1826 or 1827.
Caleb Kimball was born in Rumney, probably, where his father died. He was in the habit of going with the neighbors to the neighborhood of Providence, R. I., each summer, as work was inore remunerative there, and returning each fall. The summer that his son Charles was ten years old he departed as usual, but never returned, nor was there anything ever heard of him, so it is supposed he met with foul play. He married Sallie Hall, who was also probably a native of Rumney; her father was Henry Hall, who died at the age of ninety-four or ninety-five. He was born about the year 1730; his wife lived to a very advanced age, and is distinctly remembered by Charles C. Kimball. To Caleb Kimball and his wife were born two boys and two girls: Russell, deceased; Miranda resides in Tewksbury, Mass .; Matilda, deccased; and Charles C., the father of our subject.
Charles C. Kimball was born at Rumney, N. H., Aug. 31, 1817. Upon his father's mysterious disappearance, the family became broken up; the mother took the three youngest children and sought work in the cotton factories of Lowell, Mass. Our subject made his home with an uncle for a short time, and then lived with Washington Simpson for three years, working for his keep. For the ensuing ycar and a half he worked on a farm in Oxford in the summers, and attending school in the winters. Then he worked at Lis- bon in a brick-yard, and on the farm for five years, and going from there to North Haverhill about 1836, which has since been his home. He had worked at shoe-making in Bath a short time before coming to North Haverhill, and followed that trade for a number of years in his new home. In the meantime he purchased land, and gradually gave his attention to farming, giving up shoe-making at last. His first farm consisted
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, GRAFTON COUNTY.
of about eighty acres; later on he bought 120 acres additional, and since sold the land in par- cels to his sons. About 1876 he bought his pres- ent home in North Haverhill, and has been prac- tically retired for the past twenty years; he is still hale and hearty, and fully capable of doing a good day's work yet. He was married Sept. 27, 1841, in Rumney by an uncle of his bride, who was a justice of the peace, to Hannah Morris, who was born in Lisbon, N. H., Dec. 22 , 1817; she was a daughter of Ebenezer and Alice (Swan) Morris. To our subject's parents were born five children, as follows: Charles M. lives in North Haverhill; M. E. is the subject of this sketch; John is a farmer living in North Haver- hill; George F. is also engaged in agricultural pursuits in North Haverhill; Albert F. clerks in his brother's store; a full account of his life will be found further on. Mr. Kimball is a Repub- lican in politics.
M. E. Kimball attended school until he was nineteen years of age, and began life for himself when he attained his majority, working on his father's farm until that time. He drove a team in Boston one summer, and then began clerking in the village of North Haverhill in the spring of 1864 for Mr. Cotton; the store passed success- ively through the hands of Mr. Cotton, Messrs. Child & Morse, and William Nelson, from whom our subject purchased the stock on Sept. 10, 1872: our subject has been engaged in the mer- cantile business ever since said transfer. Mr. Kimball bought the old building and lot where his store now stands, and in 1877 he built his present commodious store building, with the upper floor devoted to his residence. He served as postmaster from March 28, 1873, to Cleve- land's first election, and again during Harrison's administration, in all seventeen years.
Mr. Kimball was joined in the holy bonds of matrimony March 3, 1867, in Derby. Vt., to Gazilda C. Moran, who was born and reared in that place; she was a daughter of Lawrence and Harriet (Brooks) Moran. Lawrence Moran served aboard an English man-of-war; he left it at Montreal and came-to Derby, Vt., where he made his home afterward. To our subject and his wife have been born five children: J. Claire, deceased: Addie: a child, unnamed, who died in infancy; Louis is attending school at St. Johns- bury, and is finishing his fourth year there at
the time of this writing; Roy is attending school in the village. Mr. and Mrs. Kimball are attend- ants of the M. E. Church, and are both members of Pink Granite Grange, No. 210, of North Hav- erhill. He is Republican in politics, and served for many years as clerk of the town school board. He is treasurer of the creamery company.
Albert F. Kimball, the youngest brother of M. E., and a son of Charles C. Kimball, is town clerk of Haverhill; he was born Sept. 13, 1855. He obtained his education in the district schools, finishing with one term at Newbury Seminary, and at the age of fifteen worked in a saw-mill for three seasons, working on the farm in the sum- mier. He also taught school through the winter tor twenty terms, his first school was taught when he was but sixteen years old. He began farming when twenty-two years of age; he bought a farm of 120 acres five miles east of the village of North Haverhill and operated it until May, 1892, when he leased it and came to North Haverhill to care for his parents, and is now clerking in his brother's store.
He was married March 10, 1876, in Greenville, Ill., to Miss Caroline Crocker, who was born in that town. She was a daughter of Samuel and Harriet J. (Ferguson) Crocker, the former born in Paulett, Vt., and the latter in Greenville, Ill. When a young man Mr. Crocker left his home in Vermont and went down the Mississippi River to the State of Mississippi, and came very near having the yellow fever. The firm in Buckley, Miss., for whom he worked sent him to Green- ville, Ill., and there he met and married his wife, settling down to make his home in that town. He became very prominent in politics of his county, and served as sheriff for years, and also as tax collector. His first wife having left him a widower with children to care for, he married again, the bride being a New Hampshire lady, who was teaching school there. He returned to New Hampshire the same year Lincoln was assassinated, with his family, in order that his wife might be near her parents during their fail- ing health. Previous to coming east he had been engaged in the milling business ; while a resident of Vermont he served three years as selectman. He finally rturned to Greenville, Ill., and died there Dec. 28, 1876. Our subject's wife was born in 1856, and lived in New Hampshire from the time she was nine years old till she was sixteen,
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when she returned to Greenville. Mr. Kimball met her when she lived in New Hampshire and kept up his acquaintance and correspondence with her till he went to Illinois and secured her as his wife. She was one of ten children born to her parents, five of whom survive, namely: Geo. M. Crocker, who lives at Mt. Clemens, Mich .; Mary L. Crocker; Caroline Crocker, our sub- ject's wife; and Flavius Morse Crocker, and Her- bert Samuel Crocker, both civil engineers, the former living in Cincinnati, Ohio, and the latter in Denver, Col. Mrs. Kimball is an Episcopalian in religious attachments. Her husband is a member of Pink Granite Grange, No. 210, as she is also. Mr. Kimball is a Republican, and has been town clerk since March, 1896; he has also served as town auditor for two years, and as police officer for one year.
PAUL N. MEADER was born in Warren, Grafton Co., N. H., June 27, 1824. He is a son of Elisha and Susan (Smith) Meader, and a grandson on his father's side of Paul Meader, whose father was one of two brothers who came from England, landing at Portsmouth, N. H. The brothers separated there, the one coming to New Hampshire and the other one being lost sight of, nothing being known at present where he made his home.
Paul Meader, the grandfather of our subject, married a Miss Knight, thus making a strong contrast, for he was a small man, not up to the average height, and she was large and robust. Mr. Meader was by occupation a teamster, and got out ship timbers from the forest and removed them to the shipyards, all the while moving back farther and farther into the country as the timber became scarcer near the coast. Their habitation was a log-house, easily set up, and deserted with very few pangs of regret. While Mr. Meader would be absent on his trips his wife would take entire charge of the farm, performing all the work usually considered as too severe for the less strongly knit frame of a woman, besides being a model housekeeper. Our subject remembers well seeing her yoke up the steers to the wagon, going into the timber, and cutting a load of fire- wood, and hauling it home for use. She
swendled, trackled, and spun all the flax that was required in the family. Her great strength and fearless nature made her respected in the pioneer community. As a sample of her prowess it is re- lated that on a certain occasion one by the name of Herrick, an unscrupulous and overbearing man, had some sheep that got mixed with the Meader flock. He came to separate them, and in doing so attempted to take more than his own. He was going to take the sheep by force had not Mrs. Meader grabbed him by the collar and trowsers and dashed him with great force to the ground, nearly killing the poor man. She also gave a sheriff somewhat similar treatment once for driving off their cow, and would have very probably killed him had she not been pre- vented. Elisha Meader, the father of our sub- ject, was the eldest of the family, and was born in New Hampshire. Arriving at a suitable age, he would often accompany his father into the timber and assist in the work. One day they went as usual to the mountains; the dump be- side the stream was piled high with logs, and when for some reason they began to roll, Paul Meader tried to save the team, and was himself caught. A log rolled over him from end to end, crushing all of his body, with the exception of the head, which was saved from mutilation by a stone which lay beside it.
Elisha Meader followed farming at Warren Summit, and married there and settled down. When our subject was eleven years old his father moved to Bath, N. H., bought a farm, and left him a mere lad at the Summit to care for the sheep for a month before coming back for him. In Bath he remained two years, going from there to Benton and taking up a farm on the mountain- side, living there for two years. He then kept the Benton poor farm for a year, going from there to Haverhill Center, where he built a house and lived three or four years. The last property he owned was a farm five miles from the village of North Haverhill. There were born to Elisha Meader by his first wife the following seven chil- dren: Samuel, formerly an extensive railroad contractor, now makes his home with our sub- ject; Joseph went to California, and may have died there, for nothing is known of him; Betsey, deceased; Mahala, deceased; Paul N., the sub- ject of this sketch; Debora, deceased; and Elisha, deceased. Elisha Meader married as his second
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wife widow Webster, who has borne him three children: Webster, who lives in North Haver- hill; Elisha, who was of a roving disposition, and went to California; and Moses, who resides in North Haverhill.
Paul N. Meader up to the age of eleven years had had no educational advantages in school. Times were so hard and it was so difficult to pro- vide for a large family that he was often obliged to go to school through the snow barefoot. The school-house was built of logs, with a great stone chimney taking up most of one side; the back- log would be dragged in on a hand-sled and a fire built around it. Although the room might have a freezing temperature, the fire-place was always a good place to warm cold feet.
His first venture on his own account was to buy 150 acres of land, paying $50.00 cash and giving his note for the rest; later on he added 150 more acres and erected a $1,500.00 house. This property he sold and bought a small place of some fifty or sixty acres for $2,500.00, where he farmed for one year. He then disposed of it and bought fifty acres for $3,700.00, and also an adjoining two-acre tract, and went into the lum- bering business. He owned 200 acres of timber land on the mountain side, and to utilize it to the best advantage, he bought a saw-mill and put in a circular saw. He ran this saw-mill in partner- ship with J. G. Blood for three years, selling at the end of that time to his partner, and bought with the proceeds a forty-acre tract adjoining his fifty-acre farm, and bought fifty acres more, paying for it $5,000.00. He still owns fifty acres, after having sold a forty-one-acre tract to one son. Keeping eleven acres of the fifty-two he sold fifty-one to Prescott. During all of this time he was also interested in a starch manufac- turing company, which made him the agent; he conducted the business for nine years. Mr. Meader bought his village residence in 1889; the farm is a very valuable piece of property and gives large returns, fifty tons of hay being the usual yearly crop.
Mr. Meader married, Dec. 5, 1848, Elizabeth Carlton, to whom were born four children: Mar- lin S., who is farming on the river meadows; Moses A., who has acquired a good education, clerked in a store in North Haverhill, then in a store at Lisbon, and was for a time foreman of the creamery at East Haverhill, and is now en-
gaged at Wells River in the same capacity; Arthur, deceased; and Abbie, who is teaching in Peterboro, N. H. Mr. Meader's second wife was Mrs. Luthria Wilmott, who died of lung fever, leaving no children. His third wife was Phoebe A. Howe, a sister to his second wife. Mrs. Meader is a member of the M. E. Church, and her husband is a member of the Free Will Bap- tist Church. Mr. Meader's father was a Demo- crat, but as our subject was opposed to slavery in the South, he could not consistently follow the lead of the party whose principles his father had espoused. Before the time of the Republican party Mr. Meader was an Abolitionist and Free- Soiler. In 1856 he voted for the first time the Republican ticket, and has been a steadfast sup- porter of that party since. He is a member of Pink Granite Lodge, No. 210.
WESLEY M. CROWN, of the firm of Crown Bros., leading merchants of Woodsville, is a native of Ryegate, in the Green Mountain State, and has been in business in Woodsville since December, 1895. Our subject was born Sept. 20, 1872.
His father, Wesson M. Crown, is still living, and is engaged in caring for his 200-acre farm, situated a few miles north of Wells River, Vt .; he is one of the most prosperous farmers in his vicinity, with land in a high state of cultivation and good, substantial farm buildings. His first wife was Margaret Whitehill; she bore him five children, as follows: Nettie, James, Jennie, Willie, and John. He married as his second wife the widow of David Whitehill; she was a daughter of James and Margaret (Harvey) Orr, and was christened Mary. By her first marriage with David Whitehill she became the mother of seven children: Harvey; Maggie; Lizzie; Nel- son, professor of the schools at Randolph, Vt .; George; Lizzie; and Jane. By her marriage with Mr. Crown she has one child, Wesley M., the junior member of the firm of Crown Bros.
Wesley M. Crown attended the common schools and the academy at Peacham, Vt., until he was 17. At that age he secured a position as attendant in the asylum at Taunton, Mass., where he remained six months. From there he went to Laconia, where he clerked in the store
HON. SOLON A. PECK.
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, GRAFTON COUNTY.
of Logee Bros. for a time, and then came to Woodsville, where he clerked in the stores of Q. A. Scott and F. P. Pray until he went into partnership with his brother in 1895. After a year in the grocery business the brothers opened a store in the new Tilton Block, and added to their fine stock of staple and fancy groceries a full line of ladies' and gents' boots and shoes.
Wesley M. Crown married Rosa Ricker, the only daughter of William and Lodema (Taisy) Ricker. William Ricker was a son of Orson and Lydia (Tacy) Ricker, and grandson of Joseph Ricker, who came from Maine, and was a cattle broker and general merchant. Lydia Tacy was a daughter of William Tacy, who came with his father, William Tacy, Sr., to the United States about 1799. Lodema Taisy, Mrs. Crown's mother, was a daughter of John and Phoebe (Heath) Taisy, the former a son of Robert Taisy, who came from Paisley, Scotland, when John was five years old. To Mr. and Mrs. Crown was born, in August, 1896, a daughter, Calista L. Mr. Crown is a member of Mooshillock Lodge, No. 25, I. O. O. F., of Woodsville, in which he fills the office of vice grand. He is a Republican.
HON. SOLON A. PECK, president of the Savings Bank of Lebanon, N. H., and largely identified with all the commercial interests of the village, was born in the house he still lives in Jan. 7, 1826, and is a son of John W. and Fanny (Huntington) Peck, and grandson of Eliel and Parthenia (Waters) Peck. His great-grandfather was Simeon Peck, who was the son of Joseph and Hannah Peck, who resided in the State of Connecticut.
Simeon Peck was born Jan. 2, 1732; he mar- ried Ruth Willis, and in 1778 came to New Hampshire from Norwich, Conn., and bought about 400 acres of wild and uncultivated land, located in the town of Lebanon, Grafton Co., be- tween the Staple bridge and the village. One of his first duties was to erect a log-house for the shelter of his family; the house still stands in the yard of our subject. He then set about the laborious task of felling the trees and cultivating the land; he also built a saw-mill, where the mills are located now, and carried on quite a business
sawing lumber for his neighbors and the new settlers; the farm was covered with a splendid growth of pine, which he was not slow to utilize as lumber. A mill for the separation of clover seed was also built and enjoyed a successful run. Mr. Peck and his wife both lived to a good old age to see their children well settled and pros- perous in life. Their children were Rose H., Walter, Ebbe, Jabez, Jaheel, Simeon, Jr., Eliel, Ruth, Lydia, Joseph, and Hannah.
Our subject's grandfather, Eliel Peck, was born in Norwich, Conn., Jan. 9, 1768, and was ten years old when his father settled in Lebanon. He made himself useful in the work about the farm and in clearing the land of the timber; he remained under the parental roof and cared for his parents, when they needed him, at last in- heriting the homestead. He spent his life in farming and in lumbering. He would make up rafts of logs and take them to Hartford, where he found a ready sale for them; he often shipped provisions to market on these rafts. In 1780 he erected a large two-storied house, which was constructed with a heavy oak frame; the house has since been remodeled by our subject, and the frames were found to be as apparently sound as they were the day they were put in; it is probably the oldest house in the town, and is in a very good state of preservation. Eliel Peck and his wife both died in 1847 at an advanced age. Their children were: John W., Sophia, Azel, Nancy, Eliel, Jr., Cynthia, Parthenia, and Hannah.
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