Genealogical and family history of the state of New Hampshire : a record of the achievements of her people in the making of a commonwealth and the founding of a nation, Vol. III, Part 136

Author: Stearns, Ezra S; Whitcher, William F. (William Frederick), 1845-1918; Parker, Edward E. (Edward Everett), 1842-1923
Publication date: 1908
Publisher: New York : Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 876

USA > New Hampshire > Genealogical and family history of the state of New Hampshire : a record of the achievements of her people in the making of a commonwealth and the founding of a nation, Vol. III > Part 136

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

(11) Benning, only son of Richard and Lucy (Butterfield) King, was born in Chelmsford, Mas- sachusetts, July II, 1767, and was brought by his parents to Wilton, New Hampshire, in 1760. He died October 14, 1845, aged seventy-eight. He was a prosperous farmer and of sterling character. He married, November 19, 1794, Abigail, daughter of Ashby Morgan. She died November 12. 1855, aged eighty-five. Her mother's family name was Greeley. She was called by one of her descendants "a para- gon of excellence." At the age of seventy-three she became a member of the Baptist Church, being

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baptized by immersion. The children of Benning and Abigail were: Samuel, Sarah, Abigail, Han- nah. Clarissa. Mary, and Sanford.

(III) Colonel Samuel, eldest child of Benning and Abigail (Morgan) King, was born in Wilton, August 26, 1795, and died June 20. 1862, aged sixty- seven. He was a farmer, residing in Wilton, and was a man of great physical vigor, once mowing on a wager six acres of grass in one day between sunrise and sunset. He was widely known as an officer of the militia, and was commissioned July I, 1829, colonel of the Twenty-second regiment of New Hampshire militia. He was also captain of a volunteer company called the "Miller Guards," which received a splendid standard from General James Miller. On two occasions, in 1840 and 1861, he offered his services to the country as a soldier. He was energetic, enthusiastic. and a man of gen- erous impulses. He married first, September, 1816, Rebecca Parkhurst, who died June 9, 1817, aged twenty-four. He married second, January 27, 1820, Lydia Livermore, who was born in Wil- ton, May 20, 1792, and died March 4. 1871, aged seventy-eight. She was the daughter of Rev. Jona- than and Elizabeth (Kidder) Livermore (See Liv- ermore, V). He had by the first wife, Rebecca Parkhurst, one child, Rebecca; and by the second wife, Lydia Livermore, six children : Elizabeth, John, George, Josephine, Henry L., and Mary W. (IV) Mary W., youngest child of Colonel Sam- uel and Lydia (Livermore) King, was born in Wil- ton, February 4. 1838, and married, January 29, I859, James Taft. (See Taft, II).

From 1634 to 1638 there arrived in New

KING England no less than seven immigrants by the name of King. Two bore the name of Thomas and the others were: William, Robert. Richard, Mitchell and Edward. There is some reason for believing that the New Hampshire branch of the family now in hand, which was es- tahlished by an early settler in Langdon. is the pos- terity of Thomas King, who was born in England in 1614. was a passenger from London in the ship "Blessing" and settled in Scituate, Massachusetts, where he was admitted to the church in 1637-8. His son, Deacon Thomas, married Elizabeth Clap, daughter of Thomas Clap, of Dorchester, England, who settled in Scituate in 1633, and was the an- cestor of Rev. Thomas Clap, president of Yale Col- lege from 1739 to 1766. Jolin King, son of Deacon Thomas and Elizabeth (Clap) King, was born at Scituate in 1677, and John King, Jr., son of John and Rebecca King, was born there in 1704.

(I) William King, the Langdon settler above referred to, came from Tolland, Connecticut, to that town as a pioneer and was prominently iden- tified with the early development of that locality. His wife was Betsey Darby.

(II) Captain William (2), son of William (1) and Betsey (Darby) King, was born in Langdon and settled in Alstead, where he became a pros- perous merchant. He was an able officer in the state militia, and participated to some extent in the anti-Masonic disturbance which took place early in the last century. For some time he struggled bravely against the ravages of pulmonary phthisis. which terminated fatally in 1851. He married Mary C. Ritchie, daughter of John Ritchie. an extensive farmer and the wealthiest resident of Londonderry in his day, who was accustomed during the winter season to transport his farm products by ox team to Boston for a market. She became the mother of twelve children, six of whom are now living. Col-

onel Dana W., who will be referred to at greater length below: Dean W., M. D., of Boulder, Colo- rado, twin brother of the colonel; James. of whom there is no information at hand: Martha H., wife of James W. Chilcott, of Denver, Colorado ; Clara, who became the wife of B. F. Clapp, of Nashua ; and Emma W., who married James T. W. Drips, of Arvada, Colorado. (N. B. These children are not given in chronological order).

(III) Colonel Dana Willis, son of Captain Wil- liam and Mary C. (Ritchie) King, was born in Alstead, New Hampshire, June 29, 1832. He at- tended the public schools of his native town, and at the age of nineteen years went to Boston, where he obtained a clerkship in a provision store. About a year later he was prevented from shipping on a whaling bark by the interference of his twin brother, and going to Detroit, Michigan, was employed in a grocery store in that city for a few months. Re- turning east, he went to reside with his parents in Nashua, and entered the employ of Josephus Bald- win, manufacturer of bobbins and shuttles. In 1854 he joined the exodus of young men bound from New England to the then newly settled states of Kansas, Nebraska and Wisconsin, and after spend- ing two and a half years in the west he returned to Nashua, where he resumed mechanical employ- ment in the repair shops of the Nashua Manufac- turing Company. Although not a mechanical ge- nius he never-the-less developed considerable abil- ity, and in cases of emergency made himself ex- ceedingly valuable to his employers. The breaking out of the civil war in 1861, aroused his patriot- ism and at the same time kindled into life a capac- ity for the military service, which was a heritage, and enlisting in Company F, First Regiment, New Hampshire Volunteers, he served in the field with credit for a period of three months, returning home a corporal. Signifying his intention of re-enlisting, he was commissioned second lieutenant of Com- pany A, Eighth New Hampshire Regiment, which was transported by water from Boston to Ship Island and attached to the Department of the Gulf under the command of General Benjamin F. Butler. He was quartered in New Orleans after its capture, and subsequently participated in nearly all of the engagements in which his regiment took part, in- cluding the capture of Port Hudson, which was captured on the third attempt, the first two having failed. General Banks then called for one thousand volunteers to take it. Colonel King was among the number who responded. It was captured at a tre- mendous cost to the Eighth New Hampshire, which was the first regiment to enter, and they pulled down the Confederate flag. For the part Colonel King took in this assault, the United States Senate, in 1906, voted him and others a medal of honor. For meritorious conduct in the face of the enemy he was promoted to the rank of captain, and at Port Hudson so many officers were either killed or disabled, that at one time he commanded several other companies in addition to his own. In the Red River expedition under General Banks his horse was shot from under him and on April 8, 1864. he was captured at the Sabine Cross Roads. Louisiana, by the enemy. His sufferings at Shreve- port, Louisiana, and within the Confederate stockade at Tyler, Texas, from which he made his escape only to be recaptured and be subjected to more hardship, can be appreciated only by those of his comrades in misery, now alive. He was finally exchanged. and rejoining his regiment at Natchez, Mississippi, re- turned with it in November, 1865, in command of the veteran battalion, with the rank of lieutenant-

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colonel, being the only remaining officer originally commissioned who was in line when the regiment left the state.

For the past thirty-eight years Colonel King has aided in no small measure in developing the re- sources of Nashua. In 1868 he was elected regis- ter of deeds for Hillsboro county and retained that office, through successive re-elections, until April 1, 1907, although the Republican party, of which he is a staunch supporter, has frequently suffered defeat. For many years he has been recognized as an expert in the examination of land titles and he still devotes much time to that occupation. He was chosen an alternate to the Republican national con- vention of 1888, was a delegate to the national con- vention at Minneapolis in 1892, and although mak- ing no pretentions to being an orator, he is an in- teresting as well as a humorous speaker and has made upward of thirty-five memorial addresses in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. In Masonry he has advanced to the thirty-second degree Scot- tish Rite, being a member of Rising Sun Lodge, Meridian Sun Chapter, Israel Hunt Council and St. George Commandery, Knights Templars; he is also a member of John G. Foster Post, Grand Army of the Republic; the Loyal Legion; the Massachusetts Association of Prisoners of War ; and has served as treasurer of the New Hampshire Veterans Associa- tion from the time of its organization, 1877, to the present time. In his religious belief he is a Univer- salist. On the outer wall of his residence in Con- cord street is a reproduction of the Nineteenth Corps badge of the Grand Army of the Republic, cut in brown stone and blazoned in gold, which at- tests beyond question his paramount interest in that organization. September 2, 1857, Colonel King was united in marriage with Miss Jennie L. Carter, daughter of Joseph and Elmira (Blake) Carter, of Nashua. The children of this union are: William D., born August 17, 1858; and Winnifred May, born March 10, 1870. The latter was married June 14, 1893, to Levi A. Judkins, of Claremont ; they have one child : Winnifred K., born October 12, 1895.

KING It is impossible at the present time to state how the first bearer of this sur- name acquired it. He may have taken it from his lofty bearing, or the place he occupied in the mock ceremonies of the thirteenth and four- teenth centuries. as for instance, Epiphany. when there was a great feast, and one of the company was elected king, the rest being according to the lots they drew, either ministers or maids of honor ; or he may have been "King of Misrule," who initi- ated and conducted the merry doings of Christmas- tide; or the king who with his queen was en- throned in each English village on May morning. (I) Thomas, son of Mitchell King, was born in Dunham, Province of Quebec, in 1831. He was ed- ucated in the common schools and learned black- smithing, which trade he has followed all his life. He removed to the United States, and lived for a time in Worcester, Massachusetts, and later went to Troy, Vermont, where he now resides, and carries on the business of his trade. He married, Jane Rice, of Sheedon, and five children were born to them: Joseph F., Nelson, Jasper, Mabel, and Maud. (II) Joseph Francis, eldest child of Thomas and Jane (Rice) King, was born in Worcester. Massa- chusetts, May 3, 1872, and was educated in the common schools of Massachusetts and Vermont. He was employed by the Central Vermont railroad for a time, and then learned the blacksmith's trade. He followed that vocation at St. Albans, Vermont,

until. 1902, and then removed to Meredith, New Hampshire, where he has since lived, and now has a large and prosperous business, being a skillful mechanic. He is a Republican and an attendant. but not a member of the Baptist Church. He mar- ried Mary Beardsley. They have six children : Ralph, Alice, Lawrence, Annette, Joseph, and Archie.

SARGENT In the tide of sturdy cmigrants who left England's shores to settle along the "stern and rockbound coast" of New England in the early part of the seventeenth century, was the ancestor of the Sargents, who have thought more about the clearing away of the wilderness, the making of homes and far ns, the erection of workshops and factories, the rearing of churches and schoolhouses, and the founding of a great free nation, than of keeping a record of their acts. A brief account of some of them is here given. The earliest record seeming to bear on the origin of the Sargent family of this article appears in the Abbey church at Bath, England, under date of November 22, 1602, where the record of the marriage of Richard Sargent and Katherine Stee- vens is set out, and it states further "Ano Dom. 1630, Jenning Walters and Joane Sargent were mar- ried April 15," and under "Baptisms." "Elizabeth, the daughter of Richard Sargent, 28 day. 1603, Oc- tober : 1606, June, William the Sonne of Richard Sar- gent the 28th; March, 1609, Joane the daughter of Richard Sargent was baptised the 26th." No further record of father or son is found there, and it is inferred that they may have gone to London and William shipped from there.

(I) One historian of the Sargent family says : "At first I was not inclined to believe this William was our ancestor, or from this part of England. But since learning that the father of William's first wife, 'Quarter Master John Perkins,' was at Agawam in August, 1631, a short time after arriv- ing in America, and that he came from nicar Bath, England, it seems quite probable that if William. was from there and with Captain Smith in 1614, when the latter landed at Agawam and wrote up its beauties and advantages, William may have re- turned and induced John Perkins and others to em- igrate." The first record found of William is in the general court records of Massachusetts Colony in April, 1633. where a copy of an act appears to protect him and other grantees of land at Aga- wam, now Ipswich, Massachusetts, in their rights. The next record is that of his oath of allegiance and fidelity in 1639. It is shown by records and deeds that he was one of the first settlers at Wessa- cucoh, now Newbury, in 1635; at Winnacunnet, now Hampton, New Hampshire, in 1638; at South Merrimac, now Salisbury, Massachusetts, in 1639. and that "William Sargent, townsman and commis- sioner of Salisbury," had a tax rate December 25, 1650, of 75. 4d. He was next located at Salisbury New Town, now Amesbury and Merrimack, in 1655, where he resided until his death in 1675. He is believed to have married Elizabeth Perkins about 1633, as she came with her parents to Amer- ica in the ship "Lion," in the spring of 1631. She died before September 18. 1670, for William mar- ried at that time Joanna Rowell, who survived him and married Richard Currier, of Amesbury. The children of William Sargent seem to have been as follows, but owing to lack and contradiction of rec- ords there is uncertainty about them: Mary, Eliza- betli (died young), Thomas, William, Lydia, Eliza- beth (died young), Sarah (died young), Sarah and

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Elizabeth. ( William and numerous descendants are noticed farther on in this article).

(II) Thomas, third child and eldest son of Wil- liam and Elizabeth Sargent, born in Salisbury, Massachusetts, June 11, 1643, died February 27, 1706, was a farmer, and resided on "Bear Hill." He took the oath of allegiance and fidelity at Amesbury before Major Robert Pike, December 20, 1677; held public office, and was quite a prominent man in civil affairs, and a lieutenant in the militia. His will was dated February S, 1706, and probated at Salem, April 8, 1706. He married January 2, 1667, Rachel Barnes, born February 3, 1648, daughter of William Barnes of Amesbury and Salisbury. She died in 1719. Both were buried in the "Ferry Cem- etery." Their children were: Thomas (died young), John (died young), Mary, Hannah. Thom- as. Rachel, Jacob, William, Joseph, Judith (died young), Judith, and John. (Jacob and Joseph and descendants are mentioned in this article).

(III) Thomas (2), fifth child and third son of Thomas (1) and Rachel (Barnes) Sargent, was born in Amesbury, November 15, 1676, and died May 1, 1719. He resided in Amesbury, was a farmer, and held office. He married, December 17, 1702. Mary Stevens of Amesbury, born 1680; died May 24, 1766. They were buried in the "Center Cemetery." Their children were : Christopher, Moses, Stephen and Mehitable. (Stephen and de- scendants receive extended mention in this article).

(IV) Moses, second son and third child of Thomas and Mary Stevens Sargent, was born in Amesbury, August 21, 1707, and died July 24, 1756, at Amesbury, where he resided and was buried. He was a farmer. He married, August 14. 1727, Sarah Bagley, of Amesbury, where she was born in 1708, and died March 16, 1801. Their children were: Orlando, Mary, Sarah, Dorothy and Christopher, whose sketch follows.

(V) Christopher (1) Sargent was born in Amesbury, May 18, 1740, and died November 10. 1830. He was a tiller of the soil. He married, June 12, 1759, Anna, daughter of Robert -, of Amesbury, where she was born August 29, 1741, and died July 31, 1824. Their children were: An- na. Moses, Nicholas, Dorothy, Betsy, Christopher, Rhoda, Sarah, Stephen and Polly.

(VI) Christopher (2), sixth child and second of Christopher and

son (1) Anna Sargent, was born in Amesbury, October 24, 1771, and died March 20. 1814. He was a farmer, and lived and died in Amesbury. He married, April 12, 1795, Jennie Patten. born April 24, 1775, died September 7, 1831. She was born, married, died and was bur- ied in Amesbury. The children of this union were : Nicholas, Cyrus, Christopher, Jane, John B., Ste- phen, John P., and Benjamin F.

(VII) Cyrus, second son and child of Christo- pher (2) and Jennie ( Patten) Sargent, was born in Amesbury. April 19, 1798. He removed to Merri- mac, where he was a farmer. He married (first ). September 25, 1825, Sarah C. Annis, Strafford, Vermont, born September 3, 1803, died October 20, 1841; and (second), January 16, 1850. Hannah M. Davis, South Lee, New Hampshire, where she was born, April 19, 1813, and died October 13, 1888. He died at Merrimac, July 19, 1886, aged ninety years. He had cleven children. nine by the first wife and two by the second, all born in Amesbury. His children were: Adeline, Christopher, Cyrus E., Jo- seph A., Sarah J., Julia A., Sarah A., Benjamin A., Lucius Clark, Mary A. and Anna.

(VIII) Cyrus Edwin, second son and third child of Cyrus and Sarah C. (Annis) Sargent, was

born in Amesbury, February 20, 1830, is a musician and resides in Boston. He married, 1854, Maria A. Houghton, of Lebanon, New Hampshire, born in Cambridge, August 13, 1857, died at Concord, April 9, 1803, and was buried at Lebanon. Their children were: Frederick E., Addie M., and Alice H.

( 1X) Addie MJ. Sargent, born 1858, married, 1888, Edward N. Pearson. of Concord, New Hamp- shire. (See Pearson, VIII).

(IV) Stephen, third son and child of Thomas (2) and Mary (Stevens) Sargent, was born Sep- tember 14, 1710, in Amesbury, and died October 2, 1773, in that town, where he always resided. He was a captain of troops in the French and Indian war, and is said to have prayed with his company while stationed at Crown Point. which was not ap- proved by the higher officers. Ile married Sep- tember 26, 1730, Judith Ordway, of Newbury, born 1712, died June 4, 1,90. Their fourteen children were : Thomas, James, Stephen, Peter, Nathan, Judith (see Elliott Colby. V), Abner, Lois, Amasa, Moses (died young), Ezekiel, Moses, Mary and Ebenezer. (Amasa and Ezekiel and descendants are mentioned in this article).

(V) Abner, seventh child and sixth son of Stephen and Judith (Ordway) Sargent, born in Amesbury, August 18, 1741, died August, 1792, in Warner, New Hampshire. Hle was a farmer, and resided in Amesbury until 1780, and then removed to Warner, where he spent the remainder of his life. He married, October 22, 1766, Sarah Rowell, of Amesbury. Their children were: Nathan, Eliz- abeth, Stephen, William R., Judith, Abner, Thomas, Lois, and Isaac. ( William R. and Isaac and de- scendants receive further notice in this article).

(VI) Stephen, second son and third child of Abner and Sarah (Rowell) Sargent, was born March 23, 1772, in Amesbury, and settled soon after attaining his majority in Warner, New Hampshire. He died there October 24, 1859, aged eighty-seven years. He engaged in farming and was a successful and representative citizen. He was married Janu- ary 23, 1804, in Warner, to Betsey Currier, who was born December 12, 1774, in that town, and died March 15, 1829. Following her death Mr. Sargent married Ruth ( Colby) Clough, who was born Feb- ruary, 1793. in Tyngsboro, Massachusetts, where she died January 19, 1881, and was buried. Their children, all born in Warner. were: Daniel C., Abner (died young), Abner, Sally, Thomas, Han- nah, Jacob R., Theodate, Isaac and Charlotte S. The eldest lived in Warner and died in Webster. Jacob R. was a farmer in Warner, where he died. Isaac was a calico printer, and died in Pennsylva- nia, and was buried in Frankfort, of that state.

(VII) Abner (2), third son and child of Ste- phen and Betsey (Currier) Sargent, was born Sep- tember 16, 1806, in Warner, and died there July 30. 1887, near the close of his eighty-first year. He was a farmer and also a merchant. He was married in March, 1835, at Springfield. New Hampshire, to Martha J. Morrill, of Boscawen, where she was born May 13. 1814. She died August 19, 18,6. in Warner. Her sons were: Walter, and Frank Mor- rill. The last named was a farmer in Warner, where he died in 1892, leaving two daughters. Myr- tie A. and Ethel Ml. The former is now the wife of Edward Brusseau, of Littleton, New Hampshire. Ethel is wife of Archie Walcott. a conductor on the Boston & Maine railroad.

(V111) Walter, elder son of Abner and Martha J. (Morrill) Sargent, was born December 25. 1837, in Warner. When he was about two years of age

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his father sold out his mercantile business in War- ner and settled in that part of Boscawen which is now Webster, and here the son grew to manhood. His primary education was supplied by the district school, and he was subsequently a student at the Salisbury, Hopkinton, Frankiin and Contoocook academies. In the meantime .he was his father's assistant upon the farm and was early accustomed to habits of industry and thereby laid the foundation of a successful career. He taught school in winter for a number of years and also worked at carpen- tering. of which trade he had acquired a thorough knowledge. For several years he was engaged in the management of Captain Samuel Morrill's farm in Andover, and in 1867 he settled upon a farm in Warner, which is now his home, and is widely known as Elm farm. It is handsomely located about two miles from the village of Warner, on the road to Kearsarge mountain, and is a handsome and commodious residence, and is the home of many who seek rest and pleasure for the summer vacation, from many localities. At the time when Mr. Sargent took possession of this farm the build- ings were in a low state of repair and inconveniently arranged and located, and he very soon began re- building in a thorough and systematic manner. His buildings are now models of convenience and comfort, and are especially adapted for their pur- poses. He has also added to the acreage of his farm so that it now covers about two hundred and fifty acres. Mr. Sargent is an intelligent and pro- gressive farmer and believes in thorough cultivation and mixed agriculture. Besides producing excellent crops he maintains a fine dairy of thorough-bred cattle, chiefly Guernsey and Jersey strain and usu- ally has regular customers. Although existing con- ditions require him sometimes to purchase grain, he considers it more advantageous to raise it, and is a successful producer of corn and other grains. which are fed and consumed upon the farm. He has also given considerable attention to rearing val- uable colts, and is a breeder of the Delaine Merino sheep, his flock usually numbering from fifty to seventy-five, and the individuals show the advan- tages of thorough breeding and careful selection.

Mr. Sargent takes commendable interest in the progress of affairs both at home and abroad and keeps abreast of the times by reading and inter- course with his fellows. He has been a member of the Warner Grange since its organization in 1877, served as secretary of the Merrimac County Council, and was charter secretary of Merrimac County Pomona Grange. He retains his interest in Grange work, but on account of impaired hear- ing has been for recent years debarred from active participation in its councils. He was for several years secretary of the Kearsarge Agricultural and Mechanical Society. He has always been a friend and supporter of the free public schools and aided in the organization of the Symonds free high school of Warner. He has also served his townsmen as one of the board of selectmen. He was married, May 6, 1863, in Warner, to Addie C. Morrill, of Andover, daughter of Captain Samuel Morrill. of that town. She was born December 14, 1838, in' Andover, and died in Warner September 26, 1873. and her body reposes in the cemetery in that town. Mr. Sargent was married (second) at Nashua, Oc- tober 3, 1877, to Fanny A. Shaw, youngest daughter of Deacon Richard and Alice (Watson) Fellows, of Salisbury, and widow of James Shaw. She is a native of Salisbury, and hier gracious manner and cheerful hospitality help to render the home of Mr. Sargent a home indeed to all who come to Elm Farm.

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Genealogical and family history of the state of New Hampshire : a record of the achievements of her people in the making of a commonwealth and the founding of a nation, Vol. III, Part 136

Author: Stearns, Ezra S; Whitcher, William F. (William Frederick), 1845-1918; Parker, Edward E. (Edward Everett), 1842-1923 Publication date: 1908 Publisher: New York : Lewis Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 876

Author: Stearns, Ezra S; Whitcher, William F. (William Frederick), 1845-1918; Parker, Edward E. (Edward Everett), 1842-1923
Publication date: 1908
Publisher: New York : Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 876