History of Rockingham County, New Hampshire and representative citizens, Part 123

Author: Hazlett, Charles A
Publication date: 1915
Publisher: Chicago : Richmond-Arnold
Number of Pages: 1390

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FRANK DALE DAVIS, a well known citizen of Salem Depot, Rock- ingham County, N. H., has been resident upon his present farm for more than thirty years. He has been identified with the shoe industry for years and at present is with Geo. W. Thom, contractor. Mr. Davis was born in Boston, Mass., May 21, 1859, and is a son of Thomas P. and Sarah F. (At- wood) Davis, a grandson of Isaac Davis, and great-grandson of Isaac Davis. It is a very early family of New England.

Isaac Davis, the great-grandfather, who saw three years' service during the Revolutionary War, was born December 24, 1760. He settled in Han- cock, N. H., where he lived until his death on August 17, 1820. His wife in maiden life was Rachel Adams, daughter of Asa Adams.

Isaac Davis, son of Isaac and Rachel ( Adams) Davis, was born Feb- ruary 18, 1776, and was a farmer by occupation. He first married Hannah Sargent, by whom he had one daughter, Harriet. After the death of his first wife, he married Mary Piper, and their children were: Isaac; Nahum P .: Harriet ; Hiram; Hannah S .; Thomas P .; John G .; Horace; Mary E .; Rachel M .; Betsy A. and Hymeneus A.

Thomas P. Davis, father of the subject of this sketch, was born in west- ern Vermont, and when young went to Boston, where for a time he worked for Dale Brothers. Later he engaged in trucking. He died April 9, 1882, and was survived many years by his wife, who died on January 2, 1907. Mrs. Davis was Sarah F. Atwood prior to marriage and their children were as follows; Charles T., born in March, 1857; Frank D .; Henry; Hattie E. A., who was born July 9, 1861, and is the wife of Dr. F. A. Spafford of Flan- dreau, So. Dak .; and George A.

Frank Dale Davis attended the old Brimmer School of Boston, and then entered the Boston office of the Nashua Iron and Steel Company, where he was employed for four and a half years. Owing to ill health he left that company and in August, 1882, came to Salem, N. H., and purchased the farm which has been his home ever since. He was in the employ of P. C. Hall & Son, shoe manufacturers, until 1884 and then continued with Crain, Hall & Company, successors to the former firm. He was subsequently em- ployed by J. E. Farrer & Co. and still later by E. Roswell & Co. in the same industry. For three years he was with A. E. Goodwin, a general contractor, and then for four and a half years clerked in the grocery of J. C. Carey. During nine years he was in the sole leather department of the shoe factory of F. P. Woodbury & Co .; at present and for the past seven years he has worked for Geo. W. Thom, contractor. Mr. Davis has been actively inter- ested in the affairs of Salem and has filled a number of local offices. He is a republican in politics and when the Australian ballot was first introduced was elected moderator. He served as such for eight years and after a lapse of time was again elected in 1906, and is now discharging the duties of that

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office. He has served as selectman, member of the school board and clerk of the school district.

In September, 1881, Frank Dale Davis was married to Miss Luella E. Welch, of Lowell, and they have two daughters, Sarah Josephine and Marian Pauline. The former was graduated from Methuen High School in 1902, and in 1906 was married to Prof. John W. Crowell, civil engineer, of the class of 1901 of Dartmouth College. Marian Pauline Davis was graduated from Methuen High School in the class of 1907. In 1892 Mr. Davis united with the First Baptist church at Salem Depot and has since been one of its most active members. He has filled the offices of choirmaster, church clerk and superintendent of the Sunday School. Fraternally he is a member of Granite Colony, U. O. P. F., and of Canobia Lodge, N. E. O. P.

JOSEPH A. BELLAVANCE, a member of the firm of Trudel & Bel- lavance, wholesale and retail dealers in liquors, at Derry, N. H., was born in St. Johns, Province of Quebec, Canada, Dec. 14, 1874. His parents were Antoine and Virginia Bellavance, the father being a lumber operator by occupation. The subject of this sketch resided in his native town until he was thirteen years of age. He then came to New Hampshire, taking up his resi- dence in Nashua, where he remained for eight or ten years. He then came to Derry and found employment in the shoe factories, being thus occupied for about eight years. Subsequent to this he engaged in the restaurant busi- ness, also opening a pool room. This combined business he sold out in order to form his present partnership with E. G. Trudel. In addition to this he is interested in real estate, owning a large business block on Broadway, Derry, in which the firm expects soon to start another business enterprise. Mr. Bellavance belongs to several fraternal orders, including the Elks, of Manchester, the Eagles, and the New England Order of Protection. He was married to Miss Ethel Morse, who was born in Chester, N. H., and was reared in Derry. They have one child, Mildred Bellavance.

CLARENCE N. GARVIN, who has been postmaster of Derry, N. H., since 1903, is one of the leading and progressive men of the community. As the executive of the affairs of his office he has been most capable, which, to- gether with his courteous treatment of all the patrons, has made him a very satisfactory public official. Mr. Garvin was born in Londonderry, N. H., and is a son of Benjamin F. and Nancy M. (Spinney) Garvin. The father was born in Litchfield, N. H., and for twenty or more years was station agent at Londonderry. The mother was born in Manchester, N. H., but was reared in Londonderry.

After leaving school, C. N. Garvin was for a number of years a book- keeper in Manchester, N. H. He then came to Derry and was with the Pills- burys in shoe manufacturing until 1903, when he received appointment on February Ist as postmaster of West Derry. The name of the village was changed in July, 1907, to Derry and Mr. Garvin received a vacation appoint- ment as postmaster, serving under that commission until Congress convened in December of that year, when he was honored with reappointment.

Mr. Garvin was joined in marriage with Miss Abbie D. Wilson, a daugh- ter of John Pinkerton Wilson, who was descended from the old and well known Wilson family of Londonderry, his mother being a Pinkerton. Mrs. Garvin died in 1910, and besides her husband is survived by three children, namely : Fred E. of Newark, New Jersey, Lillie B. and Chester A., who is

JOSEPH A. BELLAVANCE

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identified with the rubber shoe business at Beacon Falls, Conn. The Wilsons were among the oldest settlers of Londonderry; the old Wilson residence still standing is perhaps the oldest residence in Londonderry. The Wilsons were prominent in the Colonial period and many were officers in the Ameri- can army during the Revolutionary War.

FRED I. MAXWELL, formerly a well known and respected citizen of Portsmouth, N. H., was born in East Boston, Mass., October II, 1873, and died at York Hospital, York, Me., June 14, 1912. He was a son of Oliver and Mary ( Fry) Maxwell and was educated in the common schools of Bos- ton, finishing his schooling with a commercial course. He then learned the printer's trade, in which he was subsequently engaged, or was connected with, for the rest of his life. For four years he had charge of the linotype department of a printing house in Gloucester, Mass., and for an equal length of time was connected with the Portsmouth Chronicle. He then became a partner with Myron Cox in the York Transcript, of York, Me., which they conducted together for two years, or until the time of his death. Mr. Max- well was a Republican in politics. He was a 32d degree Mason, a member of the Eastern Star Lodge, of the Odd Fellows' Lodge at Boston, and the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks at Portsmouth; he also belonged to the Warwick Club. As a citizen he was broad minded and public spirited, doing his duty as he saw it, and by his death the county lost a useful and worthy citizen.

Mr. Maxwell was married in 1904 to Alice M. Downs, of Portsmouth, N. H., a daughter of the late John O. and Sarah P. (Lear ) Downs, the father being a native of the Isle of Shoals and the mother of Rye, N. H. From an obituary published on the occasion of Mr. Downs' death, which took place January 27, 1910, we gather the following facts: John O. Downs, born September 10, 1841, was pre-eminently a self-made man. He was given but an ordinary common school education, but being intelligent and industrious, he improved his opportunities and became a man of ample means. His early manhood was devoted to the sea, and for a number of years he had charge of fishing vessels. He then entered into business as a fish dealer, having a store in Portsmouth, in which city he was both well known and highly es- teemed. He was very charitable to the poor, but his charitable acts were quietly performed, and few knew of them but himself and the recipients of his favors. He was affiliated fraternally with the Odd Fellows in Ports- mouth, and in politics was a democrat. He was a man of quiet tastes, never courting publicity, but devoted to his home, his family and his business; yet his good deeds were not unnoticed and when he died all who knew him felt that Portsmouth had lost one of its best and noblest citizens. By his wife Sarah, who died February 19, 1911, he was the father of two children: Hat- tie, who died at the age of sixteen years, and Mrs. Maxwell.

LEMUEL C. RING, contractor, builder and lumber dealer of the town of Hampton, was born in Haverhill, Mass., October 26, 1854, son of George and Margaret ( Black) Ring. The father of our subject was from Marble- head. Mass., and the mother from Nova Scotia. The former was a sea cap- tain in early life but later a contractor. Both are now deceased. They had only two children-Lydia, wife of Nelson Britton, and Lemuel C.

Lemuel C. Ring was educated in the common schools of Haverhill. He then learned the carpenter's trade and from 1882 to 1900 conducted a wood-

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HISTORY OF ROCKINGHAM COUNTY

working plant at Haverhill. He then sold out his business there and came to Hampton. He keeps fully employed, finding work all through this sec- tion. In politics he is a republican but casts his vote with judgment. He is a member of Merrimack Lodge, A. F. and A. M., at Haverhill. Mr. Ring married Abigail Allen of Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, who, however, was reared in Haverhill, Mass. Her parents were David and Lydia (Durkee) Allen, the father a farmer. Their children were: Daniel, Benjamin, Edward, Abigail, and Annie, who is now deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Ring are the par- ents of four children : Percy J., Edmond A., Ethelyn M. and Robert B. Percy J. married Mabel Welch and has a daughter, Dorothy. He is an em- ploye in the navy yard at Charlestown, Mass. Edmond A. married Maud Moore of Portland, Me., and they have three children-Myrel L., Wendel C. and Lloyd C. Ethelyn is the wife of Byron Redman of the Redman Shoe Company at Hampton. Robert married Clara Berry and they have two sons, Robert H. and Donald A. Mr. Ring and family attend the Baptist Church.

GEORGE E. WIGGIN, D. V. S., who has been a resident of Exeter since 1905, is well known over Rockingham County, his professional services being in constant demand here and in the neighboring towns, his skill being very generally recognized. He was born at Boston, Mass., July 10, 1866, and is a son of William P. and Sarah ( Stearns) Wiggin. The father was a native of New Hampshire but for many years was in the produce com- mission business at Boston and there his family was reared. The mother was born in Massachusetts. There were three children: Horace, who is engaged in farming ; Emily, who is now deceased; and George E., of Exeter.

George E. Wiggin was afforded exceptional educational advantages, studying first at Cambridge, afterward becoming a student in Stone's Academy, a private school in Boston, and later entering Highland Military Academy at Wooster. Additionally he took a commercial course. Medical science, however, along the line in which he has become proficient, had always attracted him and after completing his liberal literary course of training he entered the Ontario Veterinary College, at Toronto, Canada, from which world-known institution he was subsequently graduated. For a short time he engaged in professional work at Norwood, N. Y., and then removed to Wolfboro, N. H., where he continued in practice for fifteen years, in 1905 coming from there to Exeter. Dr. Wiggin has seen wonderful progress made in veterinary science since he became a practitioner. In every way he keeps fully abreast of the advances made and his patrons find in him an able, experienced and skillful physician and surgeon. Dr. Wiggin takes no very active part in politics but has always been identified with the republican party. He attends the Unitarian church.

ARTHUR O. GOODWIN, who is partner with Francis L. Hatch in the ownership of the Portsmouth Foundry Company, engaged in the general jobbing of iron and brass castings, was born in York, Me., June 12, 1885, a son of Orleans and Lorinda ( Blaisdell) Goodwin. His parents were both natives of Maine, the father being a farmer; both are now deceased. They attended the Baptist church and were people well thought of by their neigh- bors. Their family consisted of five children: Willard; Albertina, wife of Charles Symonds; Ida, wife of Austin Trefethen; Arthur O., and Harry.

Arthur O. Goodwin was educated in the common schools, which he left at the age of fifteen years to begin industrial life. He first worked in a shoe

GEORGE E. WIGGIN, D. V. S.

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shop for about nine months, after which he entered the navy yard, where he learned the moulder's trade, remaining there about ten years. At the end of that time he became associated with Mr. Hatch in his present business, which they have since carried on with good success, doing a prosperous busi- ness. Mr. Goodwin is a democrat in politics, but casts his vote according to his own private judgment, not always considering himself bound by party lines.

He married Alice A. Mason, who was born in Kittery, Me., a daughter of Albert D. Mason, their marriage taking place in 1904. They are the parents of six children, namely : Gladys, June, Pauline, William, Henry and Mil- dred. The family attend the Christian church. Mr. Goodwin belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. A thriving business man and a good citizen, he has a wide acquaintance in Portsmouth and the vicinity, and is always alive to the best interests of his adopted city.

ELLSWORTH BROWN, proprietor of the Grangers' Nurseries in Sea- brook, which are the largest nurseries in the state, also landscape architect and author, was born in the town of Seabrook, N. H., April 11, 1865, a son of Frank Lewis and Nancy M. ( Brown) Brown.

Frank L. Brown, the father of our subject, was born in Seabrook in 1830 and was extensively engaged in farming and cattle dealing. He was a prominent citizen, representing Seabrook in the legislature. His wife, Nancy M., was a daughter of Benjamin F. and Abigail Maria Brown. They were the parents of six children, namely: Abbie Newell, born February 8, 1854; Ida Maria, born February 4, 1856; John L., born June 2, 1860; Ells- worth, born April 11, 1865; Newell Franklin, born December 25, 1857, and Frank Newell, born September 23, 1851. The name of Newell seems to be a favorite one in the family, as it was borne by the paternal grandfather, Newell Brown, whose birth took place in Seabrook in 1794.

Ellsworth Brown was educated in the public schools of Seabrook and at Dearborn Academy, where he graduated. For a number of years he fol- lowed the occupation of salesman, or until the year 1900, when he was made chief of police of Hampton. He has taken an active interest in local poli- tics, was moderator of Seabrook, representative in 1909-1910, has been president of the Republican Club for the past five years, and was elected selectman in 1914. As a landscape architect he has laid out many fine gardens and public grounds, particularly in Massachusetts. He is a man of decided literary talent, being the author of seven different dramas and several copy- righted songs, which have met with public favor. He was married in 1898 to Miss Emma M. Morrill of Newcastle, New Brunswick.

JEFFERSON C. ROWE, captain of the Navy Yard police force, at Portsmouth, N. H., was born in this city, November 21, 1842, a son of Charles H. and Harriett ( Stockell) Rowe. His parents, both natives of Portsmouth, are now deceased. They were members of the Universalist church. Their children were Charles H., Albert, and Jefferson C.

Jefferson C. Rowe, after acquiring his education in the common schools, found employment with a butcher at $1.50 a week and remained thus occu- pied for nine years, receiving an advance in salary from time to time. He was then employed in a livery stable until seventeen years of age, after which he went to work for what is now the Boston & Maine Railroad Company, and was with that road until 1871. On August 26, 1871, Mr. Rowe lost his

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arm in a very bad accident on the old Eastern Railroad (now the Boston & Maine) at Revere, Mass. After his recovery he resumed railroad work, be- ing employed for a time in a different capacity-that of messenger-and then engaged in the hacking business, in which he was interested for ten years. From 1887 to 1895 he was city marshal of Portsmouth, and at the end of that time he was appointed to his present position, in which he is serving efficiently. A democrat in politics, he has been more or less active in public affairs.

Mr. Rowe was married November 9, 1863, to Miss Sarah Clementine Lovering, who was born in Freedom, N. H., a daughter of John T. and Esther (Gray) Lovering, the father being a prosperous farmer. The chil- dren of the Lovering family were John, Edgar, Thomas, Jane, Charles, Julia and Sarah. Mr. and Mrs. Rowe are the parents of two children; Albert J., manager of Hotel Bellevue, Boston, who married Alice Grant of Portsmouth ; and Horace L., a musician of Portsmouth, who married Pearl Berry. Mr. Rowe and family attend the Baptist church. His fraternal affiliations arc with the Odd Fellows.

CHARLES E. GOVE, who owns and operates the largest farm in the town of Seabrook, consisting of 106 acres, and is also proprietor of a sum- mer hotel, was born in this town December 23, 1870, a son of Edward L. and Anna ( Maxfield) Gove. His paternal ancestors have been settled in New England since early colonial days. Among them was Edward Gove, who, in 1683, organized a rebellion against the provincial government and was sentenced to be hanged for high treason. He was sent to England by order of Charles II, and confined in the tower of London three years, but was not executed. The original Gove farm was obtained by grant from King George I in 1715.

On September 15, 1792, was born Edward Gove in Seabrook, on the same farm where his grandson, Charles E. Gove, now lives. He died Sep- tember 3, 1877, at the age of nearly eighty-five years. He was one of Sea- brook's leading farmers and was a prominent man in the Society of Friends. He married Elizabeth Morrill, and their children were: Stephen M., born September 5, 1821, and Edward L., born in Seabrook, N. H., March 18, 1826. The former married Lydia Locke, and had four children, namely : Otis M., born May 3, 1851 ; Henry M., born February 24, 1845; Horas N., born March 23, 1849, and Melvin L., born September 9, 1846.

Edward L. Gove, the date of whose nativity is given above, was one of Seabrook's representative men, a successful farmer and selectman of the town. He first married Mary Thorndyke, of which union there were two children, William H., now a resident of Plymouth, Ind., and Lucy T., who married George C. Herbert. The mother of these children died September 27, 1865, and Mr. Gove married for his second wife, Anna Maxfield, daugh- ter of Clark Norton Maxfield. Of this second union there were also two children, Charles E., subject of this sketch, and Mary A., who is now one of the leading teachers in the Boston public schools. Edward L. Gove died March 12, 1891.

Charles E. Gove was educated in the public schools of Seabrook, the Oak Grove Seminary, and the Moses Brown school at Providence, R. I. He sub- sequently took up farming on the old homestead and has since followed that occupation very successfully, his farm, as above stated, being the largest, and one of the finest, in the town. He also does a prosperous business at his

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ELMER E. LAKE, M. D.

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summer hotel, which is located at Seabrook, N. H. Mr. Gove served as selectman for five consecutive years, rendering efficient service in that posi- tion. He is a member of the Friends' church and belongs to the Junior Order of American Mechanics, and the Grange.

In 1898 he married Miss Faoline Kimball, of Kensington, N. H., a daugh- ter of Stephen M. and Mary Kimball. He and his wife are the parents of two children: Edward K., born October 22, 1899, who is a student at Oak Grove Seminary ; and Alice M., born October 20, 1904, who is being educated in Boston, Mass.

ELMER ELLSWORTH LAKE, M. D., a popular physician and sur- geon of Hampstead, was born at East Haverhill, Mass., December 10, 1863, a son of Albert and Eunice ( Duff) Lake. After graduating from the high school he prepared himself for college by studying under a private tutor and by home study evenings. Then, in 1887, he entered the university of Vermont, where he was graduated from the medical department in 1891, being vice president of the graduating class. He was also president of the Alpha Delta Sigma of the medical department in 1890-91. He began the practice of his profession in Hampstead in 1891, and has remained here since with the exception of two years which he spent in Haverhill, Mass., returning to Hampstead on account of sickness in his family. In 1912 he took the Massa- chusetts state examination, passing with the rank of eighty-seven.

In May, 1895, Dr. Lake married Mary E. Lake of Sandown, N. H., and he and his wife are the parents of four children-Vida A., Albert .C., Eunice and Maurice E. Dr. Lake belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, including the Encampment and the Rebekahs; also to the Knights of Pythias, the Grange, Daughters of America and the Junior Order of American Mechanics, and is an honorary member of G. A. R. Post No. 47 of Haver- hill, Mass. He has served the town of Hampstead efficiently as a member of the school board and the board of health.

JAMES HOWARD BROWN, who is engaged in farming in Hamp- ton Falls, N. H., and also in the insurance business, was born in this town, August 25, 1861, a son of James Drake Brown by his wife Sarah, whose maiden name was Sarah Frances Robinson. He is a grandson of Joseph C. Brown and a great-grandson of Jacob Brown, the former of whom, a native of this town, was killed in 1838 by having a rock fall on him.

James Drake Brown, father of the subject of this sketch, was born in Hampton Falls, May 2, 1835. He was educated in the public schools. in- cluding the high school at Hampton, and when a young man was engaged in the oil business in Pennsylvania. He subsequently returned to his native state and engaged in the express business, running between Hampton Falls, Lynn and Boston for twenty years. Later he engaged in buying produce for the Boston market. He was a selectman of the town and was candidate for state senator on the Democratic ticket. He belonged to Star in the East Lodge, St. Alban Chapter, and Olivet Council, all of Exeter, in the Masonic order. His wife Sarah was born in Exeter, N. H., September 6, 1838. Their children were as follows: Edith S., born March 30, 1863 ; Ada Robin- son, born December 5, 1866, who married Dr. F. A. Lane of Peabody, Mass., and James Howard. The father died April 3, 1912.

James Howard Brown was educated in the public schools and in the high school at Newburyport, Mass. He was then employed in a shoe shop

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for a short time, but subsequently engaged in farming and the insurance busi- ness, being still thus employed. He is president of the Rockingham Farmers Mutual Fire Insurance Company, having been elected in 1914, and has been one of the directors of the company for the last eight years. He is also chairman of the board of selectmen. He was a member of the legislature in 1903 and library messenger of sessions 1905 and 1907. He is now chair- man of the board of library trustees; a member of Star in the East Lodge, A. F. and A. M., at Exeter; St. Alban Chapter at Exeter; Olivet Council, Exeter, and DeWitt Clinton Commandery, K. T., at Portsmouth.

EDWIN B. WESTON, a well known attorney and prominent citizen of Derry. N. H., was born in Manchester, this state. He was educated in the grammar and high schools of Manchester and at Phillips Andover Academy, being graduated from the latter institution in 1889. In 1893 he was gradu- ated from Dartmouth College with the degree of A. B., and subsequently entered Boston University, where he was graduated LL. B. in 1897. He then began the practice of his profession in Boston, where he remained until 1903, at which time he located in Derry. He is a member of the New Hampshire Bar Association and practices in both the state and federal courts. In 1908-09 Mr. Weston was a member of the legislature and for the last five years he has served efficiently on the Derry school board. He is a Knight Templar Mason, belonging to Trinity Commandery. He was married in 1907 to Miss Lena E. Ellison, of Randolph, Vt. He and his wife have a pleasant home in Derry and move in the best society of the town.

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History of Rockingham County, New Hampshire and representative citizens, Part 123

Author: Hazlett, Charles A Publication date: 1915 Publisher: Chicago : Richmond-Arnold Number of Pages: 1390

Author: Hazlett, Charles A
Publication date: 1915
Publisher: Chicago : Richmond-Arnold
Number of Pages: 1390