USA > New Hampshire > Grafton County > Book of biographies. This volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Grafton County, New Hampshire > Part 54
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHHIES, GRAFTON COUNTY.
HON. NORMAN G. SMITH, a prosperous farmer of the town of Alexandria, and one of the leading citizens of the town and county, was born in Brunswick, Vt., Oct. 25, 1829, and is a son of Daniel and Nancy (Smith) Smith, and grandson of Gideon and Elizabeth (Amy) Smith.
Our subject's grandfather, a native of the Granite State, followed the occupation of a far- mer in Stratford, N. H., all his life. He had eight children : Daniel, Arnold, Thomas, Gideon, Isaac, Phebe, Eliza, and Nancy. They were Methodists in religious belief.
Daniel Smith was educated in the district schools of his native town, and learned the trade of framing buildings, and was then commonly known as a framer, and did nothing but frame and put together large buildings. He was an ex- cellent mechanic, and was among the best work- men of his craft. He was a Democrat in politics and held the office of selectman, and represented the town of Brunswick in the Vermont State Legislature; he was also town clerk and treas- urer several years, and justice of the peace, and held a very prominent and important place in the town, where he lived. His wife, Nancy, a daughter of Jonathan Smith of Stratford, N. H., bore him five children: Damon J., Daniel M., Judith A., Norman G., and Julia A. The family were attendants of the M. E. Church.
Norman G. Smith for three years of his early life worked in a whalebone factory, and there learned the trade of hoop-skirt making. He then edited the Coos Democrat and Northern Press, a paper printed in North Stratford, N. H., which venture did not prove very successful. After leaving the paper, he moved to Littleton, N. H., and there engaged in the general mercan- tile business, and remained about eighteen years, being highly successful in that branch of indus- try. He then purchased a farm in Alexandria, N. H., and about 1887 moved to his present home, a beautiful farm of 200 acres, with good, substantial out-buildings, which he has placed in excellent condition and order; the farm is sup- plied with the best of water. It is adapted to general farming operations, and admirably sit- uated, being about one mile and a half from Alexandria village, and about three miles and a half from Bristol. Our subject is a Democrat, and when a resident of Coos Co. was deputy sheriff for three years; in Littleton he held the
office of road surveyor for the village district five years, spending during that period on the high- ways $20,000.00. He was selectman, tax col- lector, and the occupant of several other offices when a resident of Brunswick, Vt. In Grafton Co. he has held the office of justice of the peace twenty years, and still holds the office, and repre- sented the town of Alexandria in 1895-96 in the legislative halls of Concord, N. H. He has also been a member of the Democratic State Commit- tee four years. He is well-read, possessed of a good judgment, and altogether a man of more than ordinary intelligence and ability.
In 1884 he married Mrs. C. E. Pond of Natick, Mass. In religious belief he favors the Meth- odist doctrines.
GEORGE H. FOWLER, who is engaged in carrying on a highly remunerative and success- ful drug business in Bristol, N. H., was born in that town, March 5, 1846. He is a son of Dr. Hadley B. and Caroline (Smith) Fowler, and grandson of Blake and Rith (Sleeper) Fowler.
Our subject's grandfather was a native of New Hampshire, and was engaged in farming all his life in the town of Bristol. He was a Republi- can, but never aspired to an office of any kind. In the late Civil War he was commissioned cap- tain, and, with his son, Dr. Hadley B., who was surgeon, and George H., the subject of this sketch, who was assistant surgeon for his father, served in the same regiment at one time, mak- ing the rather exceptional record of three gener- ations in the service. Three children were born to him: David, Hadley, and Hial. They were Methodists in religious belief. Socially he was a member of the I. O. O. F., Cardigan Lodge, No. 38, of Bristol.
Dr. Hadley B. Fowler was educated in the dis- trict school and academy of his native town, and after completing his education taught several years of school in New Hampshire, during which time he also studied medicine, and later entered the Medical Department of Dartmouth College at Hanover, and graduated from that institution. He first located at Alexandria, N. H., where he remained six years, and then moved to Bristol, where he practiced his profession until the com-
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mencement of the late war, when he received the commission of surgeon, and was the only sur- geon that enlisted in the service who remained until the close of the war, this being the only case on record. After returning home he re- sumed his practice in Bristol, where he remained the rest of his life, engaged in his professional duties, and was considered a very skillful sur- geon, and his services, because of his wide ex- perience in army life, were much in demand throughout the country. In politics he was a Democrat. Socially he was a member of the Cardigan Lodge, No. 38, I. O. O. F., of Bristol, N. H. He married Caroline Smith; and to Mr. and Mrs. Fowler were born three chil- dren: George H., subject of this sketch; Charles E., deceased; and Edgar O., deceased, who like his father was also a physician and surgeon, be- sides practicing dentistry. They were members of the Congregational Church.
George H. Fowler, when a young man, en- gaged in the drug business in Bristol, which he carried on all his life there, with the exception of two years, when he was assisting his father as surgeon in the late war. He is a Republican, and has held the office of deputy sheriff. He be- longs to the Knights of Pythias organization, Bristol Lodge, No. 64, and is also a member of the I. O. O. F., Cardigan Lodge, No. 38.
In 1872 he married Ora Rollins, daughter of Samuel H. Rollins of Bristol. George E., their only child, was born Oct. 19, 1875. Mr. and Mrs. Fowler are both members and active workers of the Baptist Church of Bristol, N. H.
HON. THOMAS HAMMOND, who is en- gaged in farming near New Found Lake in the town of Bridgewater, was born in Dunbarton, N. H., Sept. 6, 1814. The family in America originated from three brothers, who came from England. One of these, the grandfather of Thomas Hammond the first, received a grant for the entire town of Rowley, Mass., and left it to his eldest son at his death.
Thomas Hammond (1) was born in Rowley, Mass., in 1744, and died in 1827, aged eighty- three years. When a young man he worked at pump-making, at which he became an experi-
enced workman, but in later life followed the pursuits of agriculture. He enlisted in the Rev- olutionary Army for a short term of service, but was taken ill and his brother, David, filled out the balance of his term. He married Esther Dole of Rowley. After her husband died she re- ceived a pension for his services to the Govern- ment. They were married by Judge Wingate, who at the age of ninety-eight was able to testify to their marriage and secure for her the pension.
Thomas Hammond (2), our subject's father, was born in Dunbarton, N. H., Feb. 22, 1780, and died March 8, 1843. When he was seven years old he witnessed his father's house and barn destroyed by a cyclone. The barn contain- ing their entire crop of rye, all they had for food, was carried away with its contents. Until an- other crop could be harvested, the family were parceled out among the neighbors and supported by them. The father burned the flesh off his fingers digging out the hot bricks from the chimney, which had fallen and buried one of the children. The child was saved alive and un- harmed. Our subject's father was a farmer throughout the greater part of his life. He also learned the trade of pump-making from his father. He was a member of the Congregational Church. In politics he was a Federalist, later a Free-Soiler, and finally a Whig. He married Hannah Burnham, who was born in 1785, and to them were born seven children: Annie, who died young; Eliza; Thomas; Burnham; Henry, who died in infancy; Mary; and Henry G.
Our subject passed his earlier years in Dun- barton, N. H., his native place, until his mar- riage, Dec. 24, 1839, to Esther Hammond, daughter of Nathan and Mary (Noyce) Ham- mond. Two children were born to them: Me- lissa; and Nathan, both now deceased. He was married a second time April 16, 1846, to Sarah Hammond, sister of his first wife. He was mar- ried a third time at Bristol, Jan. 23, 1894, to Mrs. Helen S. Martindale, widow of Chester W. Mar- tindale, and daughter of Stephen and Polly (Towle) Abbott. Of her first marriage, Mrs. Hammond had one son, Merrill G. Martindale. a clothing merchant and also a notary public of Spokane, Washington. He married Grace Campbell of Miles City, Mont. Mrs. Hammond prior to her last marriage crossed the continent three times. Our subject and wife attend the
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Congregational Church. In his, politics he is a Republican. He represented the town in 1861- 62, was a selectmian in 1857-58-59-76-77, and held the office of moderator a number of times.
Mr. Hammond bought his present farm the time of his first marriage. The farm consists of 260 acres, with seventy-five acres additional in back pasture. He carried on general farming, and makes large quantities of butter and cheese. Among the agriculturists of the town he occupies an eminent position, and has been of good ser- vice in the advancement and growth of Bridge- water.
FRANK L. MOORE, manager for the Northern Supply Co., at Woodsville, N. H., was born at Alexandria, Grafton Co., N. H., May I, 1856. He is a son of Russell and Abigail (Jen- ness) Moore, and grandson of Nathan and Sally (Crosby) Moore. Nathan Moore was a veteran of the War of 1812, and a patriot in the War of the Revolution. He died at Canterbury, N. H., at the advanced age of ninety years.
Our subject's father was born at Hebron, N. H., Sept. 22, 1827; after reaching his majority he went to Bristol, and worked on a farm in that town a short time, and then went to Groton, N. H., where he continued in farm labor for some time. From there he went to Natick, Mass., where he worked in a shoe factory ten years and then moved to Alexandria and engaged in the manufacture of carriages and sleighs; he carried on this business very successfully for fifteen years, and then sold out, and changed his resi- dence to St. Johnsbury, Vt., where he worked ten years in the Fairbanks Scale Works. His next business venture was at Wells River, Vt., where he bought the Wells River Mill, and conducted it six years. He then sold the mill and opened a store for the sale of flour, feed, lime, hair, cement, coal, wood, and ice; after continuing in that business for nine years he sold out to the Northern Supply Co. his whole trade, except the ice business, in which he is still engaged. Mr. Moore served in the late war as a member of the 12th Reg. N. H. Vol. Inf.
Frank L. Moore attended the common schools of Alexandria until seventeen years of age, and then spent three years in St. Johnsbury Acad-
emy. From there he went to Manchester, N. H., and took a six months' course in Bryant & Stratton's Business College at that place, finish- ing his education when he was twenty-one. His first employment was in a mill his father had bought at Wells River; the mill was sold after six years of operation by our subject and his father. Mr. Moore then went to Concord and clerked for A. P. Woodworth six months; the stock consisted of grain, flour, and groceries. In December of 1885 he bought the flour and feed business of Langdon Bailey and the building of George Clough of Concord, and conducted the same until he sold out to the Northern Supply Co., in which he was retained as resident man- ager of the Woodsville store.
Mr. Moore was married Oct. 20, 1880, at Wells River to Miss Kate J. Buchanan, a daugh- ter of William G. and Helen (White) Buchanan. Mrs. Moore died June 14, 1886, mourned by a large circle of friends, who had learned to ap- preciate her excellent qualities. Mr. Moore is a member of the Temple Lodge, No. 10, I. O. O. F., of Wells River. In politics he is a firm Republican. He adheres to the doctrines and church government of the Free Will Baptist Church.
GEORGE E. NUTTING, deceased, a car- penter and builder 'of Woodsville, Grafton Co., N. H., was born Feb. 21, 1826, in Groton, Mass., and is a son of Joel and Esther (Lawrence) Nut- ting. Our subject's grandfather was of English extraction, and settled in Groton; securing land, he passed his days in tilling the soil.
Joel Nutting, the father of our subject, was born in Groton, in 1803, and received his edu- cation in the private schools of his native town, which were all the educational facilities offered there at that period. After reaching maturity lie learned the wheelwright's trade, which he fol- lowed steadily and with profit during the active period of his life. In politics he was a Republi- can, but never cared for a prominent place in public life. In such matters as did not require so much self-assertiveness, he took an active inter- est. He was retiring in his manners, seeming re- served to those but slightly acquainted with him, but to his friends he was ever a pleasant
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MOSES P. BEMIS.
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companion and wise counselor. He married, in 1825, Esther Lawrence, who bore him nine chil- dren, of whom but two now survive: Keziah (Carr) of Hudson, Mass., and Joel of Ware, Mass. The other children, now deceased, were: William S .; Emeline; Augustus; Sophia; Julia; Mary; and George E., the subject of this sketch. The father died in June, 1854, the mother surviv- ing till October of 1884. In point of religious sympathies they were Unitarians.
George E. Nutting was educated in his native town of Groton, and at the age of twenty he se- cured employment as a helper on the Passumpsic River and Boston & Maine railroads. He was also employed on the Central Vermont R. R. He finally left that position and learned the car- penter's trade, which he followed the rest of his years. Like his father before him, he was an ad- herent of the principles advocated by the Repub- lican party.
On May 8, 1850, he was married to Nancy B. Burnham, a daughter of Asa and Betsey (Wil- son) Burnham of Waterford, Vt. Asa Burnham was a carpenter and builder, and was very prom- inent in all public affairs of his community. He moved from Waterford, Vt., in 1869, to Woods- ville, N. H., where he remained till his death, which took place in 1887. His wife died in 1877. Of the nine children born to them, but three re- main: Nancy, Tryphena, and George. Those (leceased are: Justus, Isabel, Silas, Abner M., David, and Jonathan. Both parents were hon- ored members of the Free Will Baptist Church. Our subject and his wife have been blessed with five children, four of whom have been spared them: Charles G., S. Eugene, William S., and David B. Mary Isabel is no longer living. Mr. George E. Nutting passed to the bright world beyond, promised to those of exemplary life, on the 2nd of April, 1891, aged sixty-five years. In his religious views he was liberal.
MOSES P. BEMIS, who is successfully en- gaged in dairy farming in the town of Haver- hill, was born in the neighboring town of Lisbon, Aug. 30, 1841. He is a son of Lyman and Ann (Coon) Bemis, and a grandson of Reuben Bemis, a soldier of the Revolution. The first represen- tatives of the Bemis family in America came to
this country in the latter part of the 17th Cen- tury, about the year 1680; two of them settled in Vermont and the other took up his residence in Massachusetts.
Lyman Bemis was born in Springfield, Vt., March 13, 1803, and received his education in his native place. When twenty years old he came to Haverhill, and a few years later went to Lisbon, where he was married. In 1846 or '47 he moved to Littleton, where he engaged in the honorable pursuits of agriculture until 1864, when he lost his second wife, and from that time to the date of his death in 1878 he made his home with Moses P. Bemis and his brother in Benton. He enlisted in the War of 1812. His second wife was Betsey Little of the town of Lyman. His first wife, the mother of our sub- ject, Ann Coon, was a daughter of George and Polly (Belknap) Coon, the former from France and the latter from Scotland. George Coon, a farmer in later life, was a machinist by trade when he came to the United States at the age of eighteen. Lyman Bemis reared the following family of children, born to him by his first wife: Reuben, John, George, Martha, Lyman, Jr., who served in the roth Reg. Vt. Vol Inf. in the late Rebellion; and Moses P. All of the family have gone to their long home with the exception of our subject.
Moses P. Bemis lived the first six years of his life in Lisbon, and the rest of his youth up to the outbreak of the war in Littleton : he attended the district schools of West Littleton, and took one winter term's schooling in both Concord, Vt., and in Benton, N. H., finishing his educa- tion at the age of seventeen. When twelve years of age he began earning his own living, working first for Clark Hastings for two years, being em- ployed chiefly in the saw-mill. After that time up to the date of his enlistment, his lot was cast in various parts of Vermont and New Hamp- shire.
Nov. 7, 1861, he enlisted in Co. B., 6th Reg. N. H. Vol. Inf., and served throughout the entire four years of the war, being mustered out at Alexandria, Va., July 17, 1865, and receiving his honorable discharge at Concord, N. H., Aug. I, 1865. He served one year as private, then as corporal a few months, and as second sergeant until June 1, 1865, when he was commissioned second lieutenant of Co. G., 6th Reg. N. H. Vol.
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Inf. In all he took part in twenty-two engage- ments, as follows: Camden, N. C .; Second Bull Run, Va .; Chantilly, Va .; South Mountain, Md .; Antietam, Md .; Fredericksburg, Va .; Vicksburg, Miss .; Jackson, Miss .; Wilderness, Va .; the two battles at Spottsylvania Court House; North Anna; Tolopotomy, Va .; Bethesda Church, Va .; Cold Harbor, Va .; the three engagements at Petersburg and the Mine; Weldon River, Va .; Poplar Springs Church, Va .; Hatcher's Run, Va .; and Petersburg, Va. He was wounded in the head at Petersburg at the explosion of the mine by a piece of a shell and was laid up in the hos- pital for two months.
On his return from the front he went into the lumbering business in Benton with his brother, and owned several hundred acres of timber land and a saw-mill. In 1868 he sold his interest in the concern to his brother and moved to North Haverhill, where he rented a small farm for three years. He then bought a 125-acre farm near Black Mountain and lived there four years, hav- ing rented it to a tenant the year previous to his own occupancy; having sold this property, he bought a seventy-five-acre farm near East Hav- erhill and lived there four years. In 1886 he sold the farm near East Haverhill and bought his present farm of 230 acres, of which sixty acres are under cultivation, twenty-five acres in woods, and the remainder in pasture. The milk product from his selected herd of twenty-five cows he sells to the North Haverhill Creamery.
On Nov. 26, 1865, at Benton, he led to the altar of Hymen Miss Ann Hutchins, and there they took upon themselves the sacred obliga- tions of the marriage bond. Mrs. Bemis was born Oct. 22, 1848, and died July 29, 1891; she was the daughter of Joseph and Susan (Brown) Hutchins. Two children were born to our sub- ject and his wife: Eugene W. and Lillian B. Eugene W. married Susan Blake of Mackandoo Falls, Vt., the daughter of Lucien Blake of that town. Three children have been born to them: Holan M., Josie B., and one who died unnamed. Lillian B. Bemis married Albert C. Hall of North Haverhill, engaged in cutting stone in the stone sheds of that place. To them were born three children: Earl C., Claude E., deceased; and Darroll. Our subject and his wife are both regular attendants of the Universalist Church of Center Haverhill. He is a member of Moose-
hillock Lodge, No. 25, I. O. O. F., of Woods- ville; Canton Albin of Woodsville; also En- campment No. 34 of Lisbon; and Rebecca Lodge, No. 45, of Woodsville. He belongs to the G. A. R., Nat. Westgate Post, No. 50, of North Haverhill. He is also a member of Pink Granite Grange, No. 210, and also belongs to the organization of the Knights of Honor. He is a Republican and has held the office of road sur- veyor several terms.
As a representative farmer of the County of Grafton, and as a man in every way worthy of the respect and admiration of his fellow-towns- men, the portrait of Mr. Bemis appears on a preceding page, and will be viewed with interest by all his large circle of acquaintances.
JOHN E. HALL, postmaster and justice of the peace of Landaff, Grafton Co., N. H., was born in the above-mentioned town May 17, 1840; he is a son of Isaac W. and Lois (English) Hall, the former of Francestown, N. H., and the latter of Orford, N. H.
Isaac Hall, the father of our subject, was edu- cated in his native town, and upon attaining man's estate came to Orford, N. H., where he worked out as a farm hand. When he had saved out of his earnings sufficient to engage in busi- ness for himself, he bought a farm in Landaff, sometime between the years 1833 and 1835, and there he spent his active years, busied in the pur- suits of agriculture. He died March 15, 1877, in Haverhill, where he went to live with his son in his declining years. His wife was Lois English, the daughter of Andrew and Mary (Goodell) English; she departed this life Sept. 22, 1877. Eleven children were born to them, of whom two died in infancy: those reaching an age of maturity were: Damon B., Lorenzo D., Enos K., Lois W., Abram A., Emma, John E., David II., and Amos F. In politics Mr. Hall was a Democrat originally, but upon the formation of the Whig party, he joined its ranks; in town affairs he always took a lively and abiding inter- est, but could never be prevailed upon to accept any office. He was a man that took great con- cern in religious work, being a member of the Methodist Church, in which he held the offices
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of steward and trustee, and for many years was an honored class leader.
The district schools of Landaff and Lisbon, N. H., furnished our subject with the means for an education. Upon the outbreak of the late Civil War, John E. Hall enlisted, June 26, 1861, in Co. C., 12th Reg. Mass. Vol. Int., 3rd Division of the 5tlı Army Corps. His term of enlistment read for three years, but he only served two years, be- ing discharged on account of disability, April 25, 1803, after having been in the hospital for quite a time under treatment. During the period of his connection with the army he took part 111 every battle in which his regiment had any part, with the exception of the battle of Antietam, which was fought while he was detailed as re- cruiting officer at Boston.
Returning from the army, he purchased the homestead in Landaff, and shortly after another farm, where he remained about twelve years, liv- ing a retired life as a tiller of the soil. He then sold his farm and moved to his present home, in 1880, where he is actively engaged in agricul- tural pursuits. From the time of attaining his majority he has been a steady supporter of Re- publican principles, and, although a resident of a town which never fails to heartily endorse Democratic candidates, has been, nevertheless, the recipient of numerous offices, combining both honor and responsibility, so general is the appreciation of his services. He has been post- master ever since his first commission was given him, Jan. 22, 1868; justice of the peace since June 14, 1867, besides holding the office of se- lectman and a position on the school board for several years, and serving as moderator for a number of terms. At present he is moderator, chairman of the board of selectmen, a member of the school board, and one of the library trus- tees. He belongs to Mount Hope Grange of Landaff, of which he is Master. He is a member of Col. Emery Post, No. 23, G. A. R., of Lisbon, in which he has held all the important chairs. He has held in the past the commission of lieutenant and also that of captain in the State militia.
He was married Nov. 13, 1869, to Mrs. Patience P. Noyes, widow of Rufus H. Noyes of Landaff; she was a daughter of Savory Gordon. Their union resulting in no children, our subject and his wife adopted the daughter of his brother, Lorenzo D., Carrie E. Hall. Miss Hall was born
in April, 1869, and married Charley C. Whitcher of Landaff, and has presented him with one child, Mark H., born Dec. 6, 1894, who is very bright and intelligent for one of his years, and is the delight and comfort of both his parents and grandparents. Mr. and Mrs. Hall favor the M. E. Church. Mrs. Hall by her first marriage with Rufus Noyes had two children: Mary E .; and Frank P. Mary E. married Col. Edward P. Farr of Thetford, Vt., and is now living in Pierre, the capital of South Dakota. Harry H. Hall, the son of L. D. Hall, is also a member of the house- hold, since his father's death. He is at present town treasurer of Bath; he was born in 1867, and is the youngest treasurer, though by no means the least capable, of all that have filled the duties of that office in the town of Bath.
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