History of Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, Part 102

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton)
Publication date: 1885
Publisher: Philadelphia : J.W. Lewis
Number of Pages: 1168

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In the reorganization of the army, in September, 1866, he was transferred to the Twenty-sixth United States Infantry, and in May, 1869, was transferred to the Tenth United States Infantry. He was com- missioned major by brevet in the United States army, to rank from August 1, 1864, " for gallant services at the battle of Spottsylvania, and during the present campaign before Richmond, Va.," and commissioned lieutenant-colonel by brevet, to rank from March 13, 1865, " for gallant and meritorious services during the war." The colonel thus came to the close of the war both deserving and obtaining the reward of the gallant and faithful soldier. His comrades bore un- equivocal testimony to his bravery as a soldier and his worth as a man.

At home and in the field there was an inspiring motive urging him on to high and noble deeds, a motive greater than the love of fame and glory,-it was the love of a noble woman.

September 8, 1864, while at home on a leave of absence, Colonel Grimes married Sarah Ann, youngest daughter of Eben and Mary (Carr) Jones, of Hills- borough, N. H., who endured with him all of the fortunes and vicissitudes incident to army-life, in eamp and upon the march, while he was sojourning in the Department of Texas.

From this union there are seven children, the second of whom was born in camp on the tented field. To the writer, the children, as they come around the parental board, or as they mingle in their sports or

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HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY

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14 Juller

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HILLSBOROUGH.

perform their accustomed work, are the most interest- ing sight of all the beautiful things at the colonel's mansion on the hill. Of such children he may justly be proud. They are the chief ornaments of their home, commanding by their courteous behavior the love and respect of all who visit the family.

Nor should their colored nurse, Kate, who has been in the family for twenty years, be forgotten, -- she who has loved and watched over each of them with a love second only to that of their mother.

The children were born as follows : James Wilson, November 21, 1865; John Harvey, March 25, 1867 ; Warren Parker, October 12, 1868; Mary Carr, August 27, 1871; Henry Clitz, October 21, 1872; Clara For- saith, January 27, 1875; Cecil P., June 29, 1878.

Honorably discharged from the army with a com- petence, a large experience as a soldier, and merci- fully spared in the fiercest battles, where many a brave comrade fell, spared in the midst of malaria in the South, where he did duty for several years, Colonel Grimes, after ten years of service, returned to his native town to enjoy life. He and his fair consort, now at life's half-way house, have the love and respect of all who know them. Thus far their ranks remain unbroken. Parents and children have been spared to each other, and Kate, of the sable face but the white soul, spared to them all.

JOHN GIBSON FULLER.

The first ancestor of whom we have record is Joshua1, born in Connecticut October 2, 1728 ; married Joanna Taylor ; settled in Surry in 1764-65. Among their children were Joshua2, killed at the battle of Bennington ; Levi2, who settled in Surry ; and Cap- tain David2, born in Connecticut, died in Jay, N. Y., married (first), January 22, 1782, Elsea Gleason ; died May 20, 1790, leaving children,-David3, born June 6, 1783; Elsea3, born April 2, 1786, married Lemuel Bing- ham, of Gilsum. He married (second), February 22, 1792, Jerusha, daughter of Jonathan and Hannah (Yemmons) Adams, born September 25, 1774, died Au- gust 31, 1792, married (third), Oct. 20, 1793, Orinda, daughter of John and Sibyll (Wright) Bingham, of Gilsum, born in Montague, Mass., July 10, 1772. Children,-Levi3, born September 3, 1794, died Oc- tober 4, 1798; Jerusha3, born September 30, 1796 ; Luman3, born August 25, 1798; Levi3, born April 14, 1801, died January 30, 1804; Orinda3, born July 22, 1803, married Samuel Isham, Jr. ; George W.3, born July 13, 1805, died July 5, 1820; Bradford3, born July 16, 1807 ; Alvira3, born June 26, 1809.

David3 was born in Gilsum, N. H., June 6, 1783 ; came to Hillsborough when twenty years of age; worked out on a farm for a season, and then learned the shoemaker's trade; married, January 6, 1806, Keziah, daughter of Benjamin and Hannah (Parker) Kimball, of Hillsborough; removed to Francestown, where he remained seven years, and carried on the

shoemaker's business, adding to it that of tanning and currying. He then returned to Hillsborough Lower village, established the same business there, in which he remained during the remainder of his life. His wife died February 23, 1864; he died No- vember 8, 1867. His children were all born in Francestown, and were David Gardner4, born October 27, 1806 ; married, April 27, 1830, Jane, daughter of Josiah and Sally (Dean) Converse, of Amherst, N. H. In early life he was a noted hotel-keeper in Utica and Rome, N. Y., Washington, D. C., Richmond, Va., and other places. Later, he did an extensive business as druggist in Concord, N. H. ; died in Concord July 10, 1879. His children were Sarah Jane5, born in Hook- sett, N. H., June 25, 1836; married Joseph Harlow, of Plymouth, Mass .; Henry W.5, born in Hooksett, N. H., June 30, 1838; graduated at Dartmouth Col- lege in 1857 ; at Dane Law School, Harvard Univer- sity, as Bachelor of Laws, in 1859. Upon the break- ing out of the Rebellion he enlisted as a private in the First Regiment of three months' volunteers from this State; was commissioned first lieutenant of Company Q April 30, 1861. After the First Regi- ment was mustered out he was commissioned captain in the "Fighting Fifth." Later, was lieutenant-col- onel of the Fifteenth, then colonel of the Thirty- third United States colored troops, and finally a brevet brigadier of United States Volunteers. He remained in the service until 1866, when he settled in Boston, Mass. He was a Republican in politics, and took an active interest in public affairs, serving in the Com- mon Council in 1774, as a Representative in the Leg- islature in 1875, '76, '77 and '79, was a member of the State Senate in 1880 and 1881 and was, a few weeks before his death, appointed by Governor Robinson as judge of the Roxbury court. He married, Septem- ber 16, 1863, Elizabeth, daughter of Laban and Frances (Lewis) Beecher, of Boston, Mass., where he died April 7, 1885, leaving one son, Fred., born March 23, 1872. George C.5, born in Lowell, Mass., December 30, 1840, died in Concord, N. H., February 10, 1878. He married, December 31, 1861, Josie, daughter of Joseph and - (Shackford) French, of Concord, N. H., where she died September, 1864. Ethelinda G.5, born in Concord, N. H., December 11, 1849; died there March 5, 1851. Mark W.4, born April 7, 1808 ; married, November 17, 1831, Sarah, daughter of William and Sally (Priest) Conn, of Hillsborough. One daughter, Susan, born April 24, 1840, died December 13, 1859. John Gibson+ (see sketch). William F.4, born in Francestown, N. H., May 10, 1812; died in Hillsborough, N. H., Novem- ber 17, 1830.

John Gibson Fuller4 was born in Francestown, N. H., April 21, 1810. He was the third son of Da- vid and Kesiah (Kimball) Fuller, and came from that town to Hillsborough, with his parents, when three years old, where he grew to manhood. His only educational advantages were derived from the

426

HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, NEW HAMPSHIRE.

village school, at that time much less efficient than now. He learned the trade of tanning and currying of his father, with whom he was afterwards associated in business. Somewhere about 1850 a few calf-skins which he had tanned and sold in Boston, Mass., were purchased by Mr. Stephen Westcott, a leather dealer of that city. They proved such excellent leather that Mr. Westcott traced them back to Fuller's tan- nery, and sent a small number of green skins to Mr. Fuller to tan. The result was satisfactory to both parties, and from this small beginning was developed a large business in tanning of calf-skins only, the leather being known in market as "Westcott calf." He gave constant employment to from fifteen to twenty men. To the business of tanning was added, a few years later, that of currying. Mr. Fuller was a man of marked executive ability. He had a re- markable faculty for reading character and of influenc- ing men. His friendship meant something. If any person did him a favor, he never forgot it. Whatever he undertook to do he accomplished, if it was possi- ble. He allowed no obstacle to stand in his way. He was largely instrumental in the establishing of the Valley Bank (now First National Bank of Hills- borough), and upon its organization he was chosen its president, which position he held at the time of his death. In business habits he was methodical and prompt. In politics Mr. Fuller was a Whig and, later, a Free-Soiler. Ile hated slavery. At the time of the execution of John Brown he tolled the church bell with his own hands. While he was a man of decided convictions, resolute and energetic action, he held in high respect those who honestly differed from him in opinion.

Mr. Fuller married Ann, daughter of Nathaniel and Betsy (Robbins) Jones, of Hillsborough, who was born September 27, 1814, and who died August 22, 1865. Ile died very suddenly in Nashua, N. H., June 14, 1861, while on a business trip to that city.

Their children were Abbie A.5, born December 4. i tical surgery, and when, as was often the case, the 1834; married, in 1855, Stephen E. Westcott, of Bos- ton, Mass. Children,-Everett Fuller" (Westcott), born in Boston, Mass., in 1858, died there September 11, 1877; Edith6 (Westcott), born in Boston, Mass., December 3, 1870. Helen Marr5, born July 9, 1836; died August 8, 1840. Wirt Ximeo5, born January 23, 1850; was educated at Phillips Academy, Andover, Mass. ; married, February 3, 1870, Addie 1., daughter of George E. and Caroline Carter (Grant) Russell, of Boston, Mass., where they reside, and have children, -Wirt R.6, born January 29, 1871; Addie May6, born April 28, 1874.

ABEL CONANT BURNHAM, M.D.1

The Burnham family trace their ancestors in a di- rect line of succession to Robert1 Burnham, who was born in Norwich, Norfolk County, England, in 1581. In 1608 he married Mary Andrews, and had seven

children, of whom three sons, John2, Robert2 and Thomas2, came to America.

Thomas2 was born in 1623, and came to America when twelve years old, with his brothers, in the ship " Angel Gabriel," which was wrecked on the coast of Maine. He settled in Chebacco (now Essex), Mass., and was out in the Pequot expedition. He married, in 1645, Mary Tuttle; had twelve children, and died in 1694. His son, John3, was born in 1648; married Elizabeth Wells; had nine children, and died in 1704. His son, Thomas4, was born in 1673; he married, was the father of six children and died in 1748. Stephen ", a son of Thomas4, married Mary Andrews, and settled in Gloucester, Mass. The date of his death is un- known. He had thirteen children. One of the sixth generation, Joshua", son of Stephen 5 and Mary (An- drews) Burnham, was born in Gloucester, Mass., in 1754. He had ten children, one of whom, Thomas 7, was born in Milford, N. H., in 1783; married Rachel Conant in 1807, and removed to Antrim in 1821, where he resided until 1837, when he came to Hills- borough, where he died in 1856. His wife died in Nashua in 1871, aged eighty-seven years.

Dr. Abel& C. Burnham, the subject of this sketch, was the second son of Thomas and Rachel (Conant) Burnham, and was born in Amherst, N. H., May 2, 1812. During his boyhood he lived several years with an uncle, Rev. A. Conant, at Leominster, Mass., attend- ing school and studying at home under the direction of his uncle. He acquired an academical education at the academies of Francestown, Pembroke and Hillsborough. After teaching a year at Watervliet, N. Y., he returned to Hillsborough, and commenced the study of medicine with the late Dr. Elisha Hatch, of this town, with whom he remained two years, teach- ing school in the winter. The third year he spent in the office of the celebrated surgeon, Amos Twitchell, M.D., of Keene, N. H.

Here he had the best of opportunities to study prac- doctor was called to a distance to some difficult oper- tion, his pupil accompanied him as a trusted and handy assistant. In after-years Dr. Burnham became himself a skillful surgeon, and was called to operate in many difficult cases. He had prepared himself for this by a thorough study of anatomy, accompanied by work in the dissecting-room. He made himself acquainted with the most modern works and modes of practice in surgery, and with his own eyes saw them carried out into actual practice.

During these three years he attended three courses of medical lectures,-one at Woodstock, Vt., and two at Dartmouth Medical College, at Hanover, where he graduated in November, 1839. At the commencement exercises of 1840 the names of Dr. Burnham and his associates, who had passed their examination and re- ccived their degree the fall before, were proclaimed, in the sonorous tones of President Lord, in behalf of the trustees, Doctores Medicine. Dr. Burnham, hav-

1 By Rev. Harry Brickett, M. A.

426

HISTORY OF PILLSPOROEGH COUNTY, NEW HAMPSHIRE.

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ing already had the benefit of such teachers as Drs. Hatch, Twitchell, Holmes, Massey and other excel- lent professors in medicine, went to Lowell, Mass., and entered the office of Drs. Kimball and Bartlett, and remaining during the winter, returned to Ifills- borough in the spring and spent a year with Dr. Hatch as his assistant, and commenced practice at Hillsborough Centre in February, 1841, but removed to the Bridge village, a more central and desirable lo- cation, in October of the same year. After practicing here six years he attended a course of medical lec- tures at the University of New York and at the hos- pitals of that city, after which he returned to Hills- borough Bridge, and resumed nis practice, where he has since resided and continued in active practice until the present time (1885), a period of forty-four years,

Dr. Burnham has remarkable taet in the sick-room. As a rule, he is a man of few words, quiet and unob- trusive, and very careful of what he says in the pres- ence of the sick. His coming is gladly welcomed by his patients. He has been remarkably successful in treating the diseases of children, such as scarlatina, measles and other like diseases, and his help has been much sought for in neighboring towns. His natural tastes have led him in the direction of surgery, and he has frequently been called upon to perform capital operations, such as amputations, also operations for the removal of necrosed bone, cancers, cataract, etc., with good success.

Dr. Burnham has remarkable self-possession in time of an emergency,-good judgment, a clear head and a steady hand. Great responsibilities have often rested on him where the safety of the patient hung in the balance and seemed to depend on his skill and judgment. His intercourse with neighboring physicians has always been courteous, and with the younger members of the profession marked by great kindness, ever ready to encourage and assist them with his counsels.

Dr. Burnham has held, by appointment of the Governor of New Hampshire, through several con- secutive years, the office of surgeon of the Twenty- sixth Regiment of New Hampshire militia, and until honorably discharged at his own request.

He held the office of superintending school com- mittee in the town of Hillsborough four years. In 1846 he was commissioned justice of the peace for the county of Hillsborough, and still holds the commission. He has been twice elected to represent the town in the State Legislature, and has been a member of the Board of Education at Hillsborough Bridge for three years, also for thirteen years a member of the board of directors of the First National Bank of Hillsbor- ough; he is a member of the New Hampshire Medical Society, and in March, 1860, was made a Master Mason in Harmony Lodge, in Hillsborough, and was for several years its secretary.

For more than forty years the doctor has lived in 28

the same place, practiced in an enlarging field and held, unimpaired and ever-increasing, the confidence of the community, both as a man and a physician. November 9, 1849, Dr. Burnham married Caroline M., oldest daughter of George and Mary (Steele) Dascomb, of Hillsborough, N. H. She was born July 27, 1823.

JONES FAMILY.1

Among the earliest settlers of the town of Hills- borough, N. H., was William1, who came from Wil- mington, Mass. It is not known at what time he removed here, but his name appears upon the first records of the town now extant; nor is the name of his wife known, nor the birth-place of his large family of children, but probably the most, if not all, of them were born in Wilmington. His descendants are nu- merous, and among the most respected citizens of the town. He had four sons and five daughters.

His fourth son, James2, was born in Wilmington, Mass., and died July 18, 1839, and his wife, Anna, died March 30, 1841. Married Anna, daughter of Nathaniel and Sarah (Parker) Cooledge. Their ehil- dren were,

Jonathan3, born September 3, 1778; died March 5, 1810, unmarried.

Anna3, born February 18, 1780; married, first, Alex- ander MeClintock, and, second, Asa Goodell; died March 18, 1829.

James3, born December 9, 1782; married Sarah Smith, had one son, George, who died Nov. 11, 1844.

Silas 3, born March 6, 1784; married Catherine Rolf, went to Pittsburgh, Pa., where he died Oct. 6, 1832.

Cooledge3, born February 4, 1786; married Pierce Stone; died February 9, 1856.

Sarah 3, born March 22, 1788; died July 3, 1788.

Nathaniel 3, born May 3, 1789; married Betsy Rob- bins; died August 19, 1867.

Ebenezer 3, born February 7, 1792; married, Mary T. Carr ; died December 1, 1864.

Parker3, born February 13, 1794; married Judith Clapp; died May 28, 1861.

Solomon 3, born February 7, 1796; died in Pennsyl- vania, August 23, 1842, unmarried.

Warren 3, born February 3, 1798; married Thank- ful Dyer; died March 21, 1868.

Sarah P.3, born June 7, 1801; married Charles Baldwin ; died November 3, 1844.

Ebenezer3 married Mary Turner, daughter of Nathan and Elizabeth (Smith) Carr, October 6, 1816; removed to Unity, N. H., where he resided ten years, when he returned to Hillsborough and purchased the Nathaniel Johnson farm, upon which he afterwards resided. Their children were,-

Charlotte4, born January 6, 1818; married Alonzo Tuttle, of Hillsborough ; died August 31, 1861.

1 By John Goodale, M. D.

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HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, NEW HAMPSHIRE.

Nathan P.4, born in Unity, N. H., June 3, 1820; died August 4, 1820, in that town.

Parker + (see biographical sketch).

James 4, born in Unity, N. HI., November 17, 1823. George4, born in Unity, N. H., February 16, 1826; married Mrs. Mary (Goodale) Smith, of Hillsborough.

Mary E.', born May 22, 1828; married David W. Grimes, of Hillsborough.

Harvey 4, born July 6, 1830.

Ebenezer ', born October 24, 1832; married Malvina Shedd, of Hillsborough ; resides on the homestead ; has two sons,-James II., born November 25, 1860; Parker, born October 11, 1864.

Sarah A.4, born March 29, 1836; married Colonel James F. Grimes.

Parker 4, son of Ebenezer and Mary Turner (Carr) Jones, was born in Unity, N. H., July 31, 1821 ; he came to Hillsborough with his parents in 1830; had such educational advantages only as are afforded by the common school; he left his home when nineteen years of age "to seek his fortune," and found employ- ment at the Astor House, New York City, then one of the most famous hotels in the country. After two years as porter, he was offered a place in the office, where he was rapidly promoted to the position of chief clerk, a position for which he was peculiarly adapted, and which he continued to hold until obliged by ill health to resign. Here he formed the acquaintance of all the most eminent men in the country, which, in many instances, ripened into personal friendship.

The following tribute, written by one of his life-long friends, and published in the Home Journal soon after his death, gives a more faithful delineation of his character than a stranger can give :

"IN MEMORIAM.

" On Thursday last, at the Astor House, in the forty-sixth year of his age, Parker Jones departed this life, peacefully and in the full hope of a blessed immortality. Perhaps no man of his years, filling a similar sta- tion in life, was more widely known or had warmer friends. For np- ward of twenty-five years he had been a clerk in the office of the Astor llonse, where, in discharging the duties of his position. he came in con- tact with most of the marked men of the time. lle was an especial favorite of Daniel Webster, enjoying his confidence and frequently visit- ing him at Marshfield and at Franklin, New Hampshire, near which latter place Parker was born and passed his early life. The late N. P. Willis, who boarded at the Astor Ilonse for some years, always held him in high regard, and, for that matter, so did all who knew him. As an evidence of his popularity with the guests of the hotel, it may be mentioned that some few years since they presented him with a costly service of silver, of which he was always very proud. Among the con- tributors was Thurlow Weed, Esq., who, when the subscription-list was handed'hlm, glanced over it and immediately put down his name for an amount equal to the largest ; some days afterward Mr. Weed asked to see the list, and, taking up a pen, said,-' Parker is a good boy. I don't like the looks of my subscription,' and doubled it. The late Colonel Hazard, of Connectient, who made the Astor Honse his home when in New York, heard of the presentation after it had been made, and wrote a letter to Parker in which he expressed his regret at not having been in the city at the time, and inclosed a check for an amount equal to any on the list.

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History of Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, Part 102

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) Publication date: 1885 Publisher: Philadelphia : J.W. Lewis Number of Pages: 1168

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton)
Publication date: 1885
Publisher: Philadelphia : J.W. Lewis
Number of Pages: 1168