USA > New Hampshire > Grafton County > Gazetteer of Grafton county, N. H. 1709-1886 > Part 13
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Harry Bingham .- No man occupies a more exalted position at the bar of New Hampshire than Harry Bingham. He is facile princeps in his own state, and one of the foremost lawyers of New England. Born at Concord, Vt., March 30, 1821, he fitted for college at Lyndon, Vt., academy, and was graduated at Dartmouth in the class of 1843. His course of legal study was pursued in the office of Hon. Harry Hibbard, at Bath. He was admitted to the bar at Lancaster in the spring of 1846, and in September of the same year established an office in Littleton, which has since continued to be his home. During the time he was at college and in Mr. Hibbard's office he earned a considerable portion of the sum necessary to defray his educational expenses, by teaching in district schools and academies in St. Johnsbury, Woodstock, Concord Corner, Waterford and Wells River, Vt. When Mr. Bingham came to Littleton, Henry A. Bellows was at the full tide of his suc- cessful career at the bar. Ira Goodall, of Bath, was at the height of his fame, and Harry Hibbard occupied the position which he maintained to the end, as one of the most brilliant attorneys and advocates ever at the Grafton bar. He entered the arena of the law, fully armed and equipped for successful combat with these legal giants, and so bore himself as to command their re- spect and win a constantly increasing clientage. It was not, however, for some years that his great legal ability became generally recognized. He had none of the showy qualities which attract the attention of the multitude. His strength lay in those solid attainments which command success through less popular but more enduring channels. In 1852 his brother, George A., be- came his associate in business, and together they constituted a firm that for legal knowledge and power has never been surpassed in New Hampshire. While in partnership they were employed in every important case tried in the northern part of the state. Their business rapidiy extended and included cases in the Federal Courts as well as in the courts or adjoining states. In 1859, the brothers became members of the firm of Woods & Bingham, with offices at Littleton and Bath. This firm dissolved in 1852, and the old firm of H. & G. A. Bingham was re-established, to continue until 1874, when it was dissolved. Since then Mr. Bingham has associated in his business a number of young men who received their legal education under his careful
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Harry Bingham
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guidance. The present style of the firm is Bingham, Mitchells & Batchellor, his partners being John M. Mitchell, Albert S. Batchellor and William H. Mitchell. Mr. Bingham also has an office at Concord, N. H., with John M. Mitchell as resident partner.
At school, in college, at the bar, Mr. Bingham has been an industrious and discriminating student, whose intellectual processes winnowed the wheat from the chaff and stored it in a memory which held it secure for future use. Much reading has made him a full man, his knowledge of history and biography is remarkably full and acurate, while there is hardly any branch of literature with which he is not more or less familiar. In his profession he has mastered every branch. He has great reverence and fondness for the cold science of the law, and is equally familiar with that of the books. The client who em- ploys him gets all there is of him. No matter whether the amount involved be large or small, he gives the case his time, his thought and his patient in- vestigation. Probably no attorney in the state is so frequently called upon to furnish opinions upon matters not in litigation, and none whose advice is more generally respected and followed. He is not an eloquent advocate in the general sense of the term, but what is better, is a successful one. All his arguments are based upon the strict letter of the law. His power of analy- sis and homely vigor of statement are unsurpassed. He constructs his legal arguments as an architect erects his buildings. The foundation is laid, the walls move slowly up, every stone being securely fastened in its place, roof, doors, windows and ornaments are appropriately placed, and when complete, all criticism is defied. He seldom addresses a court or jury without instruct- ing them. His eloquence is the eloquence of honest conviction earnestly and impressively uttered.
Mr. Bingham is a Democrat root and branch, and for twenty-five years has been the intellectual leader of his party in the state. For eighteen years he represented Littleton in the legislature, and has for two terms been elected to the Senate from the Grafton district, a period of service covering twenty- two out of twenty-six years from his first entrance upon public life. He was a member of the constitutional convention of 1876, and chairman of the im- portant committee on legislative department, and exercised a weighty influ- ence in the deliberations of the convention. He has thrice been the candi- date of his party for Congress, and many times its legislative candidate for United States senator. He has also been a delegate to three national con- ventions, and has received other marks of confidence at the hands of his party. From the beginning of his public career he has been a recognized leader, and in matters other than partizan his influence has been equal to that of any other member. In debate he is direct and powerful, going straight to the gist of the matter in controversy and pounding his opponent with sledge hammer blows of fact and logic. In the halls of legislation he never speaks without commanding cause nor plays with the weapons of the dema- gogue. In manner he is dignified, impressing one with a sense of his power,
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and to those who do not know him well, reserved if not austere. He is, how- ever, one of the most approachable and kindly of men. He is democratic in all his ways, and a respecter of worth rather than of men. His alma mater conferred upon him the degree of LL.D., in 1880. He is now in the full plenitude of his great powers and the enjoyment of a success which is the just reward of laborious days devoted to the noblest and most exacting of professions.
William Joseph Bellows is the younger brother of the late Chief Justice Bellows, and possesses many characteristics common to that celebrated jurist. He was born in Rockingham, Vt., July 3, 1817. He was educated in the schools of Bellows Falls, Vt., and Walpole, N. H., and in the academy at Waterford, Vt. He was for a few years a salesman in a Boston commercial house, but in 1842 returned to Littleton and entered his brother's office as a law student. He was admitted to the bar at Haverhill in 1845, and entered into partnership with his brother under the firm name of Henry A. & William J. Bellows. This lasted until Judge Bellows took up his residence at Concord, in 1850. The Littleton business was conducted by Mr. Bellows alone until 1854, when John Farr became associated with him under the style of Bellows & Farr. This firm had quite an extensive practice, but was dissolved in 1859. Upon the advent of the Republican party to power in 1861, Mr. Bellows be- came postmaster of Littleton, a position he held seven years. Ill health led him to abandon practice in 1860, and for the next three years, in addition to his duties as postmaster, he edited The People's Journal, the organ of his party in Northern Grafton. Subsequently he engaged in trade. At the bar, as in all other relations of life, Mr. Bellows was a high-toned, honorable gen- tleman. He was a well-read lawyer and a persuasive advocate, who en- deavored to see that equity was done as well between counsel and client as between litigants. Since his retirement from practice he has often been called upon to serve as referee and magistrate in determining causes both civil and criminal. Mr. Bellows is a valued citizen of the town. He has taken a great interest in educational matters and the consolidation of the village districts, and the formation of Union school district was largely due to his influence. He was one of the original members of the board of edu- cation, and is at this time its president. He married, August 12, 1847, Miss Caroline, daughter of the late Samson Bullard, and has a daughter and two sons. Theologically, he is a Unitarian, but attends the Episcopal church.
John Farr, the subject of this sketch, has had a varied career. Brought up on a farm and subjected to the privations and scant educational advant- ages which the early settlers of the town could afford their children, a frail constitution compelled him at an early age to seek other means of livelihood than such as were offered on the rugged farm of his father. He entered the store of William Bracket and subsequently began a mercantile career, as a member of the firm of Ely, Farr & Co. He was for some years deputy sheriff for the county, and had a considerable interest in various business en- terprises. In 1848 the condition of his health led him to return to the occu- pation of his boyhood years, and we find him located upon a farm in Glover, Vt. This he abandoned two years later and returned to Littleton. At an age when few men would have deemed it prudent to change the habits formed by a life of nearly thirty years in another field of activity, he resolved to begin the study of law, and, in 1850, entered the office of William J. Bel- lows for that purpose. He finished his studies in the office of C. W. Rand, and in September, 1854, when a few months more than forty-four years of
Gro. a. Bingham
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age, was admitted to the bar at Haverhill. A year prior to his admission he had formed a partnership with Mr. Rand, which was dissolved soon after. He then became a member of the firm of Bellows & Farr (William J. Bellows) and continued this connection until 1859, when Mr. Bellows withdrew. Mr. Farr's professional life was essentially that of a business lawyer. He made a specialty of drawing business papers, collecting claims and settling estates. In this branch of the profession he was skillful and successful. When he re- tired from active business he possessed an independent fortune which was acquired during the twenty years in which he followed his profession. After his son, Major E. W. Farr, was admitted to the bar, the firm of John Farr & Son was formed, and it flourished until 1873, when the senior member sub- stantially closed his professional life. Mr. Farr has always taken an active part in public affairs, and has been an earnest advocate of every measure cal- culated to promote the best interests of the community. He has twice held the office of county commissioner, has been a member of the board of select- men, justice of the Police Court, and a member of the board of education. He married, first, Tryphena Morse, in 1833, by whom he had seven children -Caroline E., George, Mary Ellen, John, Jr., Evarts W., Caroline (wife of Dr. B. F. Page), and Charles A .; second, in 1852, Mrs. E. M. Bowman ; and third, in 1862, Mrs. Emma M. Woolson, by whom he has one child, Stella B. He is a member of the Congregational church, president of the Littleton National bank, and a trustee of the Savings bank. He is now seventy-six years of age, and though in feeble health, his interest in public affairs is not abated.
Edward Dean Rand. (See Lisbon.)
George Azro Bingham, the younger of the Bingham brothers, was born in Concord, Vt., April 25, 1826, was educated in his native town and at acade- mies in the vicinity, teaching a portion of the time to obtain the means to prosecute his studies. When twenty years of age he commenced reading law in the office of Hon. Thomas Bartlett, Jr., at Lyndon, Vt., then a leading member of the bar in that state, where he remained until December, 1848, when he was admitted to the bar at Danville, in Caledonia county. During his course as a student he applied himself with the diligence which has since been characteristic. Soon after his admission he made a trip through the west, spending some months in Iowa, but returned in June, 1849, to Lyndon, and formed a partnership with Mr. Bartlett, under the name of Bartlett & Bingham. This firm existed two years, when Mr. Bartlett was elected to Congress and George W. Roberts became a member of the firm under the name of Bartlett, Bingham & Roberts. Mr. Bingham, during his practice in Vermont, was engaged in some important causes of which he had the prep- aration and direction in the trial, substantially, and met with good success. In 1852, Mr. Bartlett, owing to the redistricting of the state, was not a candi- date for re-election, and Mr. Bingham sold his interest in the firm to the other members and moved to Littleton, Grafton county, N. H., and formed an equal partnership withr his brother Harry, under the name of H. & G. A. Bingham. In 1859 the b others associated with Hon. Andrew S. & Edward Woods, of Bath, having an office in each town, the Littleton office being in charge of Harry Bingham and Edward Woods, and that at Bath of Judge Woods and G. A. Bingham. At the expiration of the co-partnership in 1862 Mr. Bingham returned to Littleton and resumed business with his brother, under the old firm name, which continued until 1870. The different firms did a good business and were engaged in important causes, though not a large business. After the dissolution, in 1870, the brothers continued to reside in
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Littleton and to some extent became rivals in business. In August, 1876, Mr. Bingham was appointed an associate justice of the Supreme Court. From 1870 to this time he had been alone in business and had been successful, his en- gagements being chiefly as associate counsel in the trial of causes, bringing but few suits himself. At the time of his appointment his retainers numbered about four hundred in cases pending in the different courts in which he practiced, which gave him an income which may be safely said as good as that of any individual lawyer in the state. October Ist, 1880, he resigned his place on the court and resumed practice. In January following he formed a partnership with Edgar Aldrich, and two years later Daniel C. Remich was taken into the firm under the name of Bingham, Aldrich & Remich, which continued till December, 1884, when the senior member was reappointed to the bench. After he resumed practice in 1880, very many of his former clients came to him, and soon he was doing as successful a business as when first appointed, which increased until his reappointment, and was among the most lucrative in the state, his business being in the New Hampshire, Ver- mont and United States courts.
As early as 1858 Mr. Bingham was retained in the important case of Rus - sell vs. Dyer, involving the title to the Fabyan House and property, to argue it to the jury, F. O. J. Smith, of Portland, Me., being employed to argue it on the other side, and from this time forward, he was retained and took an active part in the preparation and trial of many of the important real estate cases in Northern New Hampshire and some in Vermont, such as Wells vs. Jackson Iron Manufacturing Company, commenced in 1860, to recover twelve thousand acres, including the top of Mt. Washington; Cahoon vs. Coe, for the recovery of Wentworth's Location-a tract of fourteen thousand acres, and the so-called New Hampshire Land Company cases vs. H. L. Til- ton and others for the recovery of large tracts in Bethlehem, in all about 26,- ooo acres ; also, several important will cases, of which that of Dr. Samuel Bemis was as noted as any. He was also counsel for six years in the business of the Grand Trunk Railway Company in the states of New Hampshire and Vermont, and the Boston, Concord & Montreal Railroad Company, during which time several important causes were tried, such as Richardson vs. G. T. R. in the U. S. Circuit Court for the district of Vermont, and reported in the I of Otto 454, Taylor vs. G. T. R., reported in the 48 N. H. 304.
Mr. Bingham is a good, thorough lawyer, quick to apply his knowledge to. the case in hand ; his mind is clear and penetrating ; no flaw in the prepara- tion or case of his opponent escapes his keen scrutiny, and no fact essential to his client is neglected or left obscure. As an advocate he had great in- fluence with the jury, strong in statement, powerful in appeal, eloquent in address. His knowledge of human nature and commanding presence com- bine to make him an effective advocate. As a judge he possesses the essen- tial qualifications of an admirable presiding justice. He holds the scales of justice with even poise. His extensive knowledge of the law and practice enable him to detect the main points in issue, and hold the contending coun- sel quietly but firmly to them. He possesses great patience, and here, as at the bar, his industry is continuous and unflagging, and thus early in his judicial life has earned and worthily wears the title of model judge. He has been twice married and has five children. Judge Bingham has taken great interest in public affairs. Democratic in politics, in the counsels of his party he has been an active and sagacious leader, and it has often recognized his merit. He has been twice elected senator in the State Legislature, in 1864 and 1865, twice representative from Littleton to the General Court in 1875.
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and 1876, a delegate to the Democratic national convention held at Charles- town and Baltimore in 1860. and was the candidate of his party for Congress in 1880. His interest in educational matters is evinced by his membership of the board of education for Union School district in Littleton from 1874 to 1886, and by his holding the office of trustee of the State Normal school eight years, from 1870. He is a director in the Littleton National bank and and president of the Savings bank. Amid the pressing demands of a large professional business, he has discharged the duties of these minor positions with fidelity.
Evarts Worcester Farr, son of John and Tryphena (Morse) Farr, was born in Littleton, October 10, 1840. When a mere lad he resolved to make his own way in the world, and, leaving school, went to Roxbury, Mass., where for some months he drove a milk wagon into Boston. After an experience of nine months in this business he concluded that it was hardly suited to his talents, and returned home to resume his place in school. He fitted for col- lege at the academy in Thetford, Vermont, and entered Dartmouth in 1859. The following winter he taught the village school in Whitefield, N. H. He did not return to Dartmouth, but entered his father's office and began the study of law. His pursuit of this science was destined to a rude interruption. The call to arms which followed the conflict at Fort Sumter found in him a swift volunteer. He was the first volunteer of Littleton, and accompanied its first contingent to the battle-field. Of his career as a soldier, from the in- glorious engagement of the first Bull Run to the triumphant close of the con- flict, we have spoken elsewhere in this work. When soldiers were no longer needed, he resumed his studies and, in July, 1867, was admitted to the bar at Lancaster and formed a partnership with his father. Major Farr entered at once upon a considerable practice, and by trying his own causes, to a large ex- tent, broadened and increased the business. Before coming to the bar he had been appointed deputy assessor of the internal revenue, and held this office until he was appointed assessor for the third district of New Hampshire in 1870. He entered zealously into the political contests of the day, and was frequently the candidate of his party for representative to the legislature and for town offices, but failed of an election because of an adverse political major- ity. He was a member of the exective council in 1876, from the Fifth Coun- cillor district, solicitor for Grafton county, and in 1878 was elected to Con- gress from the old Third district, receiving a plurality of 1,045 votes over Col. Henry O. Kent, the Democratic candidate. In November, 1880, he was re- elected to the 47th Congress. His Congressional career was short, having covered but one session of his first term. Here, however, as in other spheres of public life in which he was called to serve, his strong common sense, his ready tact, his suavity, his genius of adaptability and his devotion to duty, bid fair to extend his fame beyond the limits of his native State. He quickly won the respect and retained the confidence of his associates in all the rela- tions of life. At the bar the same traits of character which gave him so large
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a degree of success in political life made him a popular attorney with as large a clientage as he cared to possess. His constantly increasing interest in pub- lic matters engrossed so large a share of his time from the first, as to prevent his giving that attention to the law which the extent of his practice would seem to require. As it was, his intellectual resources enabled him to meet the demands of his business and gave him more than the average degree of success at the bar. It can not be doubted that, had he devoted himself especi- ally to his profession, his ability would have enabled him to attain a foremost position in its ranks. He was a fluent, persuasive and often eloquent speaker. Major Farr married at Portsmouth, N. H., May 19, 1861, Miss Ellen F. Bur- pee, of New Hampton, N. H., who with three children survives him.
His last Congressional contest was made with Judge George A. Bingham as his principal opponent, and was for some time doubtful. He threw himself into it with more than his accustomed energy, and its labors were such as to seriously impair his health, which had not been robust since the wounds he received at the battle of Williamsburg. A severe cold contracted late in November resulted in an attack of pneumonia. which terminated fatally No- vember 30, 1880. His untimely death was widely mourned.
John Michael Mitchell occupies a position in the front rank of New Hamp- shire lawyers. He is the son of John Mitchell, of Derby Vt., and was born in Plymouth, N. H., July 6, 1849. His education was acquired in the com- mon schools and at the academy in Derby, Vermont. He began his legal studies with Edmunds & Dickerman, of Derby, and in 1871 entered the office of Hon. Harry Bingham, in Littleton. Admitted to the bar in March, 1872, he was at once employed by his preceptor, and one year later became his part- ner, under the firm name of Bingham & Mitchell. He remained in Littleton until 1881, when he removed to Concord and established there an office of his firm. He still retains an interest in the firm of Bingham, Mitchells & Batchellor. Mr. Mitchell is devoted to his profession, bringing to the dis- charge of the duties of an attorney, good natural abilities, untiring industry and a laudable ambition to serve his client as well as to achieve distinction as a sound, learned and honorable lawyer. He has to some extent made a spe- cialty of the preparation of briefs, and presents the law with fullness, logical force and precision. He has given much attention to, and is a master of, corporate law and has been the most active of the counsel engaged in the several cases growing out of the lease or the Northern railroad to the Boston & Lowell corporation. He has taken an active and influential interest in pub- lic affairs and was for two years a member of the board of selecmen of Lit- tleton, in which position he rendered the town important service by funding its debt at a low rate of interest and in other respects. He served as solicitor of Grafton county from March, 1879, to July, 1881. November 19, 1874, he married Miss Julia C. Sonergan, by whom he has a daughter and a son.
Albert Stillman Batchellor, born in Bethlehem, N. H., April 22, 1850, son of Stillman and Mary Jane (Smith) Batchellor, attended the seminaries at
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Newbury, Vt., and Tilton, N. H., and was graduated at Dartmouth, in the class of 1872. The same year he entered the office of H. & G. A. Bingham, and after pursuing the usual course of study, was admitted to the bar in March, 1875. For one year he was employed by Hon. G. A. Bingham, and when that gentleman went upon the bench, he took his office and entered upon an active practice. Charles W. Bolles was for one year his partner. In 1879 he became a member of the firm of Bingham, Mitchell & Batchellor. This firm, with the addition three years later of William H. Mitchell, still con- tinues, and is regarded as among the strongest in the state. Mr. Batchellor has not been an exception to the rule among Littleton attorneys, but has taken a lively interest in politics. He has three times represented the town in the General Court, and served a term of two years as solicitor of the county. In the legislature he bore a prominent part, and was at one time the candidate of his party for speaker. He served on the more important committees, and proved a spirited and practical debater. At the bar he is thorough, systematic and conscientious in the discharge of the duties of his high office as an at- torney. He takes such an interest as good citizenship requires in all matters affecting the public welfare. He is a lover of books, and given to collecting such as relate to local and national history and genealogy. For some years he has given as much time to matters pertaining to the history of Littleton as the demands of an exacting business would permit, and is a member of the committee appointed by the town to prepare its history for publication. He is also one of the most active members of the Grafton and Coös Bar Asso- ciation. He is a forcible and instructive writer, and an effective public speaker. In April, 1880, he married Miss Harriet A. Copeland. They have two children, a son and a daughter.
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