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. IV, Part 89

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: 878

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. IV > Part 89

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The progenitor of the Jacobs family JACOBS of Hingham, Massachusetts, was Nich- olas Jacobs, who came from Hing- ham, England, and from the Jacobses of Hingham have descended a great number of the name who are now scattered to all parts of the United States.

Nicholas Jacobs was one of the very early planters who settled in "Bare Cove," Hingham, Massachusetts, prior to the arrival of Rev. Peter Hobart and his company in 1635. According to Cushing's manuscript, "Nicholas Jacobs with his wife and two children and their 'cosen' Thomas Lincoln, weaver, came from old Hingham and settled in this Hingham. 1633." In September, 1635, he had a grant of a house lot containing three acres. Other lands were also granted to him at different dates for planting purposes. He was made free- man in 1636; was selectman in 1637; deputy to the general court, 1648-49, and often engaged upon the business of the town. He died June 5, 1657. He inade his will May IS, 1657, which was proved July 25 following. His estate was appraised at three hun- dred ninety-three pounds eight shillings six pence. The christian name of his wife was Mary. She sur- vived him and married (second), March 10. 1659, John Beal, widower. The children of Nicholas and Mary were: John, Elizabeth, Mary, Sarah, Hannah, Josiah, Deborah and Joseph.

Justine, a descendant of Nicholas Jacobs, the im- migrant, resided in Rhode Island, and died in Windsor, in that state December 9. 18 -. He took part in the revolution, and assisted in the capture of a British vessel, and as his share of the prize money distributed to the captors he received one hundred and twenty thousand dollars. He married, October II. ISII, Polly Sargent, who was born in Windsor, Vermont, October 2, 1793, and died in May, 1880, daughter of Moses and Saralı (Cram) Sargent, of Weare. (See Sargent, VI.) They had four children: Fernando C., Justine, Emily and Mary C.

Fernando C., oldest son and child of Justine and Polly (Sargent) Jacobs, was born in Warren,

H. F. JACOBS.

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Vermont, January 16, 1813, and died in Stewarts- town, . New Hampshire, August 11, 1899, aged seventy-six. When a lad he went with his uncle, Moses Sargent, to Troy, New York, and lived with him for several years, and then returned to Vermont and learned the tanner's trade at New Haven. In 1835 he went to Albany, New York, and worked at his trade there and in Troy two years. He then resided and was employed three years in Colebrook, New Hampshire, and two years in Stanstead, prov- ince of Quebec, Canada, and then removed to Canaan, Vermont, where he enlarged his business, erected a tannery, and carried on tanning and the manufacture of shoes and harness for sixteen years. He was successful in business and accumulated property, and with his savings he established a resort for tourists and hunters in the wild and delightful region of the Upper Connecticut, where sportsmen found rare game and fish, and the tourist pure air and lovely scenery. In 1860 he built the Connecticut Lake House, on the shore of Connecticut Lake, in the town of Pittsburg, Coos county, which formed the terminus of a carriage drive of twenty-five miles from Colebrook, and became headquarters for sports- men and lumbermen. There he remained eleven years, and then removed to Lancaster, where he spent the two following years farming; then three years as proprietor of the Brunswick Springs House ; and the next three years in the grocery trade in Colebrook. In 1880 he located at Stewartstown Hol- low, where he formed a partnership with Lucius Parkhurst under the firm name of Parkhurst & Jacobs, and conducted a general merchandise store until he retired from active business.

Mr. Jacobs was an intelligent and well-informed man, and as active in public affairs as he was in his private business. In politics he was first a Whig and then a Republican. From 1850 to 1860 he was master in chancery in Essex county, Vermont, and from 1857 to 1860 notary public in the same county. He was postmaster at Canaan four years; deputy sheriff four years ; lister, and holder of other offices. During the civil war he was a deputy provost marshal ; he rep- resented Pittsburg in the legislature in 1865-66; was collector and selectman some years ; was postmaster at Stewartstown six years; justice of the peace in Pittsburg from 1861 to 1871, and of Stewartstown from the time of his becoming a citizen of that town until his death. In his later life he was as agile and vigorous as a younger man, and retained his activity and strength until a short time before his death.

He married (first), September 7, 1845, Julia A. Cooper, who was born in Canaan. Vermont, October 21. 1821, and died in Canaan September 20, 1867, daughter of Judge Jesse and Sarah ( Putnam) Cooper, of Canaan, Vermont, the latter a grand- daughter of General Israel Putnam, of revolutionary fame. Of this union were born five children : Alma P., Sarah C., Henry F., Charles J. and Julia Anna. Alma P. married Captain H. S. Hilliard, of Lan- caster; Sarah C. married Dr. David O. Rowell, of Coos; Henry F. is the subject of the next paragraph ; Charles J. was superintendent of the Baldwin bob- bin mill at West Manchester, and died in 1896; Julia Anna resides at Fall river. F. C. Jacobs mar- ried (second), in Danvers, Massachusetts, Caroline Putnam. For his third wife he married Barnett.

Henry Fitz Jacobs, eldest son and third child, of Fernando C. and Julia. A. (Cooper) Jacobs, was born in Canaan, Vermont, September 24, 1850, and was educated in the common schools. At the age of fourteen years he entered the employ of C. D. Cobb,

of Boston, and F. E. Downer, where he was emt- ployed three years as a clerk. In 1872 he settled in Colebrook, where he has since resided. From 1872 to 1892 he was engaged in the livery business. Since 1895 he has been a broker and speculator in real estate. In connection with this he was for twelve years interested in a carriage manufactory and in dealing in grain, and was extensively engaged in farming, having charge of several large farms. He is also active in the production of wood pulp. It was through his instrumentality that fine concrete sidewalks were laid in Colebrook, and it is to his efforts that the village is indebted for the posession of two stone watering troughs. The streets were macadamized. so far as they have been done, while lic held the office of superintendent of streets. It was through his endeavors that the streets were lighted, he having purchased the first street-lamp ever set in the village. He is an authority on fast horses, has fitted and sold dozens under the mark of 2:30, including Clifford, 2:13, and now owns a horse with a record of 2:0514 .. He has been suc- cessful in business, and is a director in the Colebrook National Bank. In politics he is a Republican, and for eight years he was deputy sheriff, and for more than twenty years he has been justice of the peace. He is a member of Excelsior Lodge, No. 73, Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows, of which he is a past grand; and also a member of Colebrook Grange, No. 223, Patrons of Husbandry. He married, March 20, 1878, at Colebrook, Florence G. Carlton, who was born in Colebrook, February 5, 1859, daughter of Calvin C. and Sarah (Watkins) Carlton, of Cole- brook. Two children have been born of this mar- riage: Fernando C., deceased, and Ida A., who is a graduate of Tilton Seminary and resides with her parents.

Mr. Jacobs is a cousin of Henry Dennison, who is the legal adviser of the Mikado of Japan, and whose sketch appears elsewhere in this work.

LAW (I) James Law, son of Thomas and Abbie (Pike) Law, was born in Brookline, Mas- sachusetts. He was educated in the com- mon schools of Brookline. His trade was that of a wool scourer ; later he was a teamster in Lowell. In politics he was a Democrat. He attended the Universalist Church. He married Rebecca Jane Holt. They had three children: John Kittredge, George A., who is a conductor on the Concord & Portsmouth railroad; and Emily.

(II) Jolm, eldest of the three children of James and Rebecca Jane (Holt) Law, was born in Frank- lin. New Hampshire, August 12, 1836. He was educated in the public schools of Lowell, Massachu- setts. After completing his education he went to work in a cotton mill there. Later he was in the em- ploy of the old Boston & Lowell railroad for a number of years. In 1859 he came to New Hampshire, and was in the shoe manufacturing business until 1862, when on August 12 he enlisted in the Eleventh New Hampshire Regiment, Company B, under Col- onel Walter . Harriman. In a short time he was promoted to sergeant, and was in line for higher pro- motion when he was wounded at Fredericksburg. He hoped to be able to enter the service again, but could not; so he was discharged on January 19, 1864. Mr. Law prides himself on his patriotism. He enlisted for the war just before his first son was born.

After his discharge he came back to New Hamp- shire and resumed the shoe business. In the late sixties he went to work for the Howard & Quimby Company, of Boston, installing woolen machinery.

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He was with them about four years, and covered both the United States and Canada. He then went to Norfolk, Massachusetts, and was superintendent of the carding and sewing department of the Elliot Felting Company. This company afterwards es- tablished a leather board factory at Webster, New Hampshire, and he was made resident superinten- dent of the branch; but later the company changed hands and he discontinued his work with them. Mr. Law is a fine machinist, understanding all about mill machinery, and he has refused many excellent po- sitions. In 1876 he came to New London and bought a two hundred and fifty acre farm. He has carried on general farming, and was one of the first to take summer boarders. His farm was considered one of the best in the county, and has recently been sold to a man from Cleveland, Ohio. Mr. Law now lives on another adjoining it. In politics he is a Republican. He has been moderator for forty-five years in succession. He has been constable many times and chief of police, and is now holding those offices. He has served on the board of selectmen five terms, and for two terms was chairman. He has been justice of the peace several years. In 1899 he represented the town in the state legislature, and was sergeant-at-arms of the house of representa- tives. He holds that commission still. He was sergeant-at-arms of the constitutional convention in 1902.

Mr. Law is an Odd Fellow. He was made a Mason in Lafayette Lodge of Manchester. He is past master of King Solomon's Lodge of New Lon- don, and a member of the council, chapter, Knights Templar and Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, and was a delegate to the last encampment at Denver, Colorado. He was a dele- gate to the national convention, at Louisville, but did not go. He attends the Episcopal Church.

John Kittredge Law married Mehitabel L., daughter of Ahijah and Maria Ring, of Deerfield, New Hampshire, in October, 1858. They have two children : John Walter Harriman, born September 9, 1862, and Fred Albert, born March 4, 1868. John W. H. Law married Myra Andrews, of Warner, New Hampshire, and they have one child, John W. John W. H. Law is a rural mail carrier in New London. Fred A. married Caroline G. Currier, daughter of Herman and Susan Currier, of New Lon- don; they have one child, Nina Ruth. Fred A. Law is a mechanical engineer, and is at present at Hartford, Connecticut, in the automobile business. He was for nine years with the Columbia Company. He is an inventor, and has perfected many machines.

Gowing is a name not numerous either GOWING in America or England. It may pos- sibly be related to the Irish Gowan, through the first American ancestor is said to have come from Scotland. In this country the name is especially associated with Lynnfield, Massachusetts, where the family was prominent for generations. Daniel Gowing is a name constantly recurring in the history of that town, though the family is now practically extinct there. During Revolutionary times there was a noted tavern kept in Lynnfield by Joseph Gowing. and the building is still standing and occupied. In England the name appears among the directors of the East India Company in 1805. (I) Robert Gowing, the immigrant ancestor of the family, was probably a native of Scotland and was born in 1618. He came to Massachusetts in 1634, being then but sixteen years of age, and resided in Dedham, Wenham and Lynn. He was made a

freeman in 1644. in Dedham, having previously been in Watertown, and lived in Wenham from 1640 to. 1660. After this his home was in what is now Lynn- field. He was married October 3, 1644, to Elizabeth. Brock, and died June 7, 1698.

(II) John, son of Robert and Elizabeth (Brock) Gowing, was born December 9, 1645, (Savage says. November 13) in Dedham, and lived through his adult life in Lynn, where he died May 28, 1720. No. record of his marriage is found, but his wife's name appears as Joanna, and their children, born from 1683 to 1704, were: Annis, John, Daniel, Thomas, Elizabeth, Samuel, Joanna, Lois and Timothy.

(III) Samuel, fourth son and sixth child of John and Joanna Gowing, was born March 10, 1696, in Lynn, and lived in that part of the town which is now Lynnfield, where he died September 3, 1733- He was undoubtedly a cultivator of the soil. He was. married about the beginning of 1730 (intention pub- lished December 21, 1729) to Patience Bancroft, who was born July 14, 1708, daughter of Ebenezar and Abigail Bancroft.

(IV) James, son of Samuel and Patience (Ban- croft) Gowing, was born January 18, 1736, in Lynn- field. He was an early settler in Jaffrey, New Hamp- shire, removing thence from Lynn in 1777. He set- tled on lot sixteen, in range two of that town on land which is not now occupied. He was a man of considerable prominence in Jaffery, holding the offices of moderator, selectman and tythingman, and was re- spected and esteemed. His death occurred very sud- denly on June 6, 1805, when he fell and expired im- mediately in the road near his house. He was mar- ried, January 10, 1760, to Lydia Wellman, who was born May 7, 1735, daughter of Jonathan and Esther Wellman, said to be of Welsh descent, and died January 4, 1826. They were the parents of twelve- children : Lydia, Samuel, James, Benjamin, William, Azeal, Levi, Rosanna, Simeon, Thirza, Joseph and Esther.

(V) James (2), second son and third child of James (I) and Lydia (Wellman) Gowing, was born April 16, 1763, in Lynnfield, and settled in Dublin, New Hampshire. He was . twice married. His first wife was Abigail, eldest of the seven children of Moses and Elizabeth Greenwood, of Dublin. She was born April 27, 1774. They had twelve children : Anna, Elmira, Moses Greenwood (who is mentioned below), Almerin, Harriet, Lyman. Betsey, James. Jonathan, Abigail G., James and Harriet. Several of these children died in infancy. Mrs. Abigail (Greenwood) Gowing died January 10, 1817, and James Gowing married Mrs. Lucy Wilder for his. second wife. They had one child, James R.

(VI) Moses Greenwood, eldest son and third child of James (2) and Abigail (Greenwood) Gow- ing, was born June 27, 1797, at Dublin, New Hamp- shire. He was a farmer and lived on the ancestral homestead. He married Lucy, daughter of Samuel Derby, of Dublin. They had three children: Maria B., Lucy, who died in infancy; and Calvin Clark, whose sketch follows. Moses G. Gowing died Sep- tember II, 1860; his wife died October 13, 1884.

(VII) Calvin Clark, only son and youngest child of Moses Greenwood and Lucy (Derby) Gowing, was born August 14. 1831, at Dublin, New Hamp- shire. He attended the public schools of his native town, and carried on farming. He was a Republi- can in politics, and an attendant of the Unitarian Church. He lived on the old Gowing homestead till March 12, 1868, when he removed to Walpole, New Hampshire, and bought the farm of twenty-two acres where his daughter now lives. This place is located half a mile south of the town on the river

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road. Calvin C. Gowing married Elmira MI., daugh- ter of Dr. Asa and Elmira (Sanderson) Heald, of Dublin. Calvin C. Gowing died August 25, 1883, at Walpole. His wife died January 27, 1867.

(VIII) Clara, daughter of Calvin C. and Elmira M. (Heald) Gowing, was born March 28, 1864, at Dublin, New Hampshire. She lives on the place bought by her father in Walpole. Her house con- tains many ancestral relics, among them the old knapsack, bayonet and canteen belonging to her great-grandfather. Moses Greenwood, which date from Revolutionary days.

FARRINGTON (I) Henry G. Farrington, son of Captain Philip Farrington, was born in Fryeburg, Maine,

and was a carpenter and contractor. In 1845 he re- moved to Manchester, New Hampshire, where he lived the remainder of his life, carrying on the same business. He was a member of the Unitarian Church, and was active in its interest. He married Sarah Charles, daughter of Major James Charles. She died in 1846. Three children were born of this marriage.

(II) Henry Arthur Farrington, son of Henry and Sarah (Charles) Farrington, was born in Frye- burg, Maine. He was educated in the common schools, and learned the trade of carpenter under the supervision of his father, and later qualified for teaching, but did not enter that profession, From 1855 to 1862 he was clerk in the Amoskeag mills. In the latter year he entered the employ of Kidder & Chandler, merchants. The following year he was appointed enrolling officer in Manchester, and per- formed the duties of that office for the town. He was appointed clerk in the United States Treasury, Washington, D. C., which . he declined. Returning to the mill, he was appointed overseer of the finish- ing department, which position he filled until 1906, when he was appointed superintendent of the finish- ing department. By steady work and careful use of his earnings, Mr. Farrington has been able from the first to save money which he has judiciously invested, at one time was junior partner in the firm of Temple & Farrington, the leading stationers of Manchester, and is also treasurer of the Hygienic Finger Tip Com- pany. He has been active in politics for years, and as a Republican has served in the common council and board of aldermen of Manchester. He has been elected to the board of selectmen where he served two years, was a member of the constitutional con- vention in 1902, and represented ward 4 in the legislature in 1899. He is a member of the Unitarian Church, of which he has been a director. He became identified with Odd Fellowship by joining Mechanics Lodge, No. 13, at Manchester, May 11, 1858. With- drawing from that lodge he became a charter mem- ber of Wildey Lodge, No. 45, in 1866, and was its first noble grand. He was admitted to the Grand Lodge in 1867, and passed the chairs in that body, being grand master in 1878. The two following years he was grand representative, and again served as such in 1893 to fill a vacancy. He was a charter member of Wonolancet Encampment, and past chief patri- arch, and was first commandant of Grand Canton Ridgeley. In 1866 he was appointed colonel of the military branch, and as such commanded the New Hampshire contingent in the parade at the session of the Sovereign Grand Lodge in September, in Boston. He was made brigadier-general of the Second Bri- gade in December, 1866, and for the next five years served as such at many brilliant functions. June 4, 1891, he declined further honors. He has been treas- urer of the Odd Fellows Home for twenty-four

years, and is still serving in that capacity. In 1907 the annual report of the treasurer shows the fol- lowing financial condition of the home: Cash assets, $38,771.51 ; real estate, $100,000.00. He is a mem- ber of the Derryfield Club.

He married, December 25, 1857, L. Augusta Adams, born in Vermont, daughter of Stephen Adams, of Vermont. They have had three children : Grace W., Arlie A. and Georgia.

There are several representatives of FOOTE this family among the early American immigrants, Nathaniel Foote, of Weth- ersfield, Connecticut. was born in England, about 1593. and was one of the pioneers of that New Eng- land settlement, where he died in 1644. He left a numerous progeny, and a large number of the name in this country trace their ancestry to him. This branch of the family has a coat of arms bestowed by King James, and there is a pretty legend con- nected therewith. The symbol consists of a shield divided by a chevron, and having quarterings of clover leaves. The crest is an oak tree, and the motto, "Loyalty and truth." It is said that during one of the wars between the English and the Scotch, King James was in danger of his life, and was res- cued by an officer named Foote, and conveyed to a wood nearby where he was concealed in a hollow oak tree: and that the arms and motto were be- stowed in recognition of this deed. The following line is probably descended from the Massachusetts Footes, though all may have had a common English ancestry, if it could be traced sufficiently far. The early links are lacking, but the unusual name of Pasco would seem to indicate that the present branch is derived from Pasco Foote, who had land granted him in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1637. He probably did not actually settle there till some years later, perhaps in 1653, in which year all of his eight children were baptized on the same day, February 6. Among these children was Theophilus, who also lived in Salem. By his first wife he had three chil- dren, the youngest of whom was named Pasco (2).

(I) Deacon William Lowell Foote, son of Chellis and Sarah (Lowell) Foote, and grandson of Pasco Foote, was born at South Berwick, Maine, near the close of the sixteenth century. He was a woolen manufacturer. He was a deacon of the First Baptist Church for many years. He married Mary Plummer Wood. daughter of Daniel and Miriam (Bodwell) Wood, of Lebanon, New Hamp- shire, and granddaughter of Major Daniel Wood. They had six children: Daniel W., William Lowell (2), whose sketch follows, Hannah M., Sarah and Susan E.

(II) William Lowell (2), second son and child of Deacon William L. and Mary P. (Wood) Foote, was born June 26, 1827, at Rollingsford, New Hamp- shire. He attended the common schools at South Berwick, Maine, until 1845, when at the age of eighteen he became associated with his father in a woolen mill, owned by the latter. Mr. Foote re- mained in this business till 1857, when the mill was sold. He afterwards became bleacher in the beetling department, in which he continued for about thirty years, or until 1889, when he retired from active work. He attended the Baptist Church, and was a Republican in politics. He was prominent in Odd Fellowship, and was past grand of Washington Lodge. No. 4, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, at Somersworth, New Hampshire.

On August 10, 1848. William Lowell Foote mar- ried Elizabeth Ann Meserve, born July 27, 1825, daughter of Colonel John and Sally (Hayes) Me-

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serve, and granddaughter of Jonathan Meserve, of South Berwick, Maine. The Meserves are an an- cient New England family, and the name has been traced to a Norman-French source. Colonel John Meserve, born April 14, 1785, was colonel of New Hampshire volunteers in the War of 1812 and saw service on the northern frontier under General Hull. His wife, Sally ( Hayes) Meserve, was born March 13, 1785. William L. and Elizabeth A. ( Meserve) Foote had six children: Julia Anna, born at South Berwick, Maine, October 27, 1849; Ellen Jane, May 3, 1851 ; Louis William, September 21, 1852; George Henry, July II, 1857, at Somersworth; Adelbert, April 25, 1859, at Somersworth; and Arthur Lowell, whose sketch follows. William Lowell Foote died December 28, 1906, at Greenland, New Hampshire, and his wife, Elizabeth Ann, died November 24, 1892, at Somersworth, New Hampshire.

(III) Arthur Lowell, fourth son and sixth and youngest child of William (2) Lowell and Elizabeth Ann (Meserve) Foote, was born in Lewiston, Maine, December 25, 1863. In his second year he moved with his people to Somersworth, New Hamp- shire, where he attended various schools till June 27, 1883, on which day he was graduated from the high school. The following Monday he began the study of law with Beecham & Pierce, of Somers- worth. After the dissolution of the firm he con- tinued to read law with George E. Beecham, the former senior partner, till March II, 1887, when he was admitted to the bar of New Hampshire. Dur- ing the year 1886 he had formed a partnership with George E. Beecham to carry on the insurance busi- ness. with his office in Sanbornville, and after Mr. Foote's admission to the bar, the partnership was extended to cover the practice of law, with offices at Somersworth and Sanbornville. Soon after this time Arthur E. Wiggin was taken into the firm, which was then known as Beecham, Foote & Wig- gin, and an office was opened at Farmington, and they attained considerable prominence in the practice of general law. In 1892 Mr. Beecham died and the dissolution of the partnership followed. Mr. Foote continued at Sanbornville, where he is established in practice alone, and has built up a well deserved reputation as a lawyer. He was county solicitor in 1896-97. December 19, 1899, he was admitted as an attorney and counsellor to the circuit court of the . United States. He is a Republican in politics. He is a member of the Theosophical Society of New York City. Mr. Foote is much interested in fra- ternal organizations, and is past master of Libanus Lodge, No. 49. Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, of Somersworth; past great sachem of the great council of New Hampshire, Improved Order of Red Men. and four times elected great representative to the great council of the United States. He belongs to Dover Lodge, No. 184, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, by which he has several times been elected to deliver the memorial address. On June IF 1888, Arthur Lowell Foote married Carrie Bell Sanborn, daughter of Charles and Elizabeth San- born, of Somersworth, New Hampshire, and they have one child, Lowell Sanborn, born June 2, 1891.

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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. IV, Part 89

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: 878

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: 878