History of Rockingham County, New Hampshire and representative citizens, Part 6

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

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Judge Bell was deeply interested in historical studies, and contributed some valuable papers on the early persons and events of New Hampshire. He was a constant and stanch supporter of the New Hampshire Historical Society, of which he held the office of president, and collected much material for the work upon the history of the courts and bar of the province and state.

David Pillsbury, son of Benjamin Pillsbury, was born at Raymond, February 17, 1802, graduated from Dartmouth College in 1827, studied law with Hon. Henry Hubbard and Hon. Samuel D. Bell, and began practice in Chester in 1830, and remained there till 1854, when he removed to Con- cord, where he died May 25, 1862. He was representative two years from Chester in the Legislature of the state, and was police judge of Concord. He had a taste for military affairs, and rose to the rank of major-general of the militia.

He was a man of fair talents, of industry, and of considerable learn- ing in his profession, but lacked acquaintance with human nature, and though he prepared his causes carefully, was very liable to be out-generaled before a jury. He was a bachelor, and was sometimes made the butt of waggery, as is not unfrequently the case with those in like forlorn circum- stances.

Moody Kent was born in Newbury, Mass., in the year 1779, graduated at Harvard College in 1801, read law with Hon. William Gordon and Hon. C. H. Atherton, of Amherst, was admitted to the bar in 1804, and the same year settled in practice in Deerfield. He remained there until 1809, when he removed to Concord, in which place and in Pembroke he spent most of the remainder of his life. He died unmarried February I, 1866, leaving the bulk of his large fortune to the New Hampshire Asylum for the Insane.

Mr. Kent acquired scholarship and great general information, and was 3

HISTORY OF ROCKINGHAM COUNTY

industrious, methodical, and sagacious. He was a sound lawyer, but did not practice for many of the later years of his life, his time being occupied by the care of his large property.

DEERFIELD

Phineas Howe was a native of Hopkinton and the son of Deacon Jotham Howe. He was a graduate of Dartmouth College, in the class of 1798, and afterwards was a teacher in Deerfield for five years, studied law, and opened an office for a short time in Weare, but returned to Deerfield in 1805, and continued in the practice of his profession there until 1809, when he returned to Weare. He is believed to have lived afterwards in Maine, and in the State of New York, where he died. He is understood to have shown capacity and some literary taste.

Jesse Merrill was a native of Atkinson and a graduate of Dartmouth College in 1806. He studied law and was admitted in 1812, and com- menced practice in Deerfield immediately, but remained there but a short time. He lived afterwards in Bradford, Vt., and died there in 1864, at the age of seventy-five.

Josiah Butler was a son of Nehemiah Butler, of Pelham, and was born there December 4, 1779. He graduated from Harvard College in 1803, and pursued the study of the law under the direction of Hon. Clifton Clagett, and afterwards in the State of Virginia, where he was admitted to practice in 1807. He then returned to his native town and pursued his profession there until 1809, when he removed to Deerfield. He began his political life the same year as representative in the State Legislature from Pelham. In 1810 he was appointed sheriff of Rockingham County, but in 1813, when the opposite political party attained the ascendency, he was removed by address from the office. This loss was naturally well made up to him by his political friends when they afterwards came into power. He was appointed clerk of the Court of Common Pleas, in 1815 and 1816 he was chosen a representative from Deerfield to the State Legislature, and in 1817 he was elected a representative in the Congress of the United States, where he continued by successive re-elections until 1823. In 1825 he was appointed an associate justice of the State Court of Common Pleas, and held the office until 1833, when the courts were remodeled, and after- wards he received the commission of postmaster of Deerfield, which he con- tinued to hold until his death, October 29, 1854.

Judge Butler was possessed of superior abilities and of honest purposes ; he was true to his party, of unquestioned integrity and usefulness. As a lawyer he was attentive to his business, faithful, industrious, and persever- ing. As a citizen he is spoken of in terms of the highest commendation by those who knew him best.

Frederic H. Davis was a native of Boston, and was said to have been educated at the Roman Catholic College in Baltimore. He practiced in Salem in 1815, and came to Deerfield the next year, but remained only a year or two.

David Steele, Jr., was a native of Peterborough, and graduated from

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Dartmouth College in 1815. After reading law with Hon. James Wilson, he commenced practice in Deerfield in 1818, but remained only a short time, removing to Gaffstown, where he passed the residue of his life.

Josiah Houghton studied law at the Connecticut Law School and in the office of Hon. Boswell Stevens, of Pembroke, and on being admitted to the bar in 1820 set up practice in Deerfield, where he died in 1833. He was a respectable practitioner and an estimable citizen. His death was the result of excitement and exposure, caused by the search for a child who had strayed away from his home.

Ira St. Clair was born in New Hampton, August 9, 1796, read law with Stephen Moody, Esq., of Gilmanton, and S. C. Lyford, Esq., of Gilford, and began practice in his native town in 1824. The next year he changed his residence to Deerfield, where he remained for the rest of his life. In 1848 he received the appointment of judge of probate for the county of Rockingham, and held it until 1857. He was a lawyer of competent learn- ing, with a good deal of old-fashioned prudence and caution, and was in many ways well fitted for the responsible office which he held. His character was excellent, and he was much respected by the community. He died April 5, 1875.

Horatio Gates Cilley was a son of Hon. Horatio G. Cilley, of Deerfield, and was born November 26, 1805. He graduated from Dartmouth College in 1826, and pursued his law studies under the direction of Hon. George Sullivan, commencing his professional life in Deerfield in 1830. He was a lawyer of respectable learning and capacity, and was chosen a representa- tive of Deerfield in the General Court for the years 1851 and 1852. Not long afterwards he left the state and removed to Lewiston, Me., where he passed the remainder of his life. His death occurred March 13, 1874.

DERRY

John Porter was born in Bridgewater, Mass., February 26, 1776. He completed his college course at Dartmouth in 1803, and studied law with Aaron Hutchinson, Esq., of Lebanon, and in 1806 began to practice in Derry (then Londonderry). He represented that town in the State Legis- lature for five years, and the town of Derry for ten years. He was also a member of one of the commissions to revise the statutes of the state.

Mr. Porter's education and capacity were quite above the average, and ' he was esteemed an able and learned counselor. He was engaged in many contested causes in the courts, though he lacked confidence in his powers as an advocate, and the most important of them were argued to the jury by other counsel. He gained the confidence of the community in an unusual degree, and there is no doubt that he conducted his legal business with prudence and uncommon skill, and was faithful to the interests of his clients.

He was a tall, impressive-looking man, deliberate in movement and speech, but with a thorough appreciation of all that was bright and humorous.

James Thom was born in Londonderry, August 14, 1784, graduated from Dartmouth College in 1805, studied his profession with Hon. George Sulli- van, and was admitted an attorney in 1808, making Exeter his first resi-

HISTORY OF ROCKINGHAM COUNTY

dence. While there he edited a paper called The Constitutionalist, besides attending to his law business. In 1815 he changed his residence to his native town, and remained there till his death, November 27, 1852. He was a representative in the Legislature for several years, and took a lead- ing part therein. About 1828 he was instrumental in obtaining the charter of a bank in Derry, and became its cashier, after which he gave little time to his profession.

He was a bright, ready man, of popular manners, and sang a good song in the old-fashioned convivial assemblies of the bar. He was public-spirited and took much interest in every movement for the benefit of his town. Few men have passed through life with the more general esteem and regard of all parties than Mr. Thom.

David Aiken Gregg, a native of Londonderry, was born March 12, 1788, and died at Derry, May 15, 1866. He was a graduate of Dartmouth College in 18II, and began the practice of law in Londonderry in 1814, removed to Salem in 1817, and returned to Londonderry in 1820. In 1832 he was representative in the State Legislature, and state senator in 1840 and 1841. He was also postmaster of Derry, and register of probate from 1842 io 1847, during which time he resided in Exeter.

Mr. Gregg manifested no little of the sagacity and wit which character- ized his Scotch-Irish ancestors. He was never largely engaged in the courts, but conducted a quiet, useful business to the satisfaction of those who employed him.

Thornton Betton, a son of Hon. Silas Betton, was born in Salem in the year 1800, and died there September 1, 1841. He graduated from Dart- mouth College in 1820, studied law with James Thom, Esq., and set up in his profession in Salem, from which town he was sent as representative to the General Court for two or three years. In 1830 he changed his resi- dence to Derry, and that town also he represented in the Legislature.

Mr. Betton possessed talents, and during his rather brief career made something of a figure. It is believed, however, that his judgment and bal- ance were not equal to his enterprise.

Edward Pinkerton Parker, son of Rev. Edward L. Parker, was born in Londonderry, April 18, 1816. Graduating from Dartmouth College in 1836, he taught in the Pinkerton Academy and studied law for two years, and was admitted to practice in 1839, establishing himself in Derry. From 1843 to 1847 he was principal of the Adams Female Academy there, and then removed to Merrimac, where he formed a connection in business with Hon. James U. Parker. In 1853 he bade adieu to the law and engaged in manufacturing. He died in Merrimac.

Joseph A. Gregg was the son of Hon. David A. Gregg, of Derry. He studied law in his father's office, and commenced practice in Derry about 1842. In 1850 he was a member of the convention to revise the constitution of the state, and the youngest of that body. He was a man of promising talents, and had he been spared gave every indication of rising to eminence. He died September 9, 1854, at the early age of thirty-one. An obituary notice mentions the fact of his holding the office of postmaster, and being one of the prominent and enterprising citizens of his town.

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John Porter, Jr., was a son of John Porter, Esq., of Londonderry. He studied law under the direction of his father, and entered practice in 1837 at Bedford as the partner of Jonas B. Bowman, Esq. Two years after- wards they removed to Manchester. Mr. Porter at a later date entered into trade in Manchester. Afterwards, about 1858, he returned to Derry and resumed his law practice. He was irregular in his habits, and his law business dwindled, and at length, without notice to his friends, he went to Enfield and joined himself to the Society of Shakers there. He became a leading member of the sect, and was for several years engaged as their business agent, acquitting himself quite to their satisfaction. He died among them in 1875.

EPPING

William Plumer filled no small space in the legal and political history of the state. His native place was Newbury, Mass., where he was born June 25, 1859, but when he was but nine years of age his father, Samuel Plumer, became a citizen of Epping, in this state, where his son ever after- wards resided.

William attended the schools of the neighborhood while assisting his father on the farm until he was seventeen, after which he had no instructor except while acquiring his legal education. But he was a great reader, and had an active mind and a retentive memory. His first essay in life was as a preacher of the Baptist denomination when he was just reaching his majority ; but before long his opinions changed, and he resolved to study law. His instructors were Hon. Joshua Atherton, of Amherst, and Hon. John Prentice, of Londonderry, though he gave little credit to the latter.

Mr. Plumer was admitted to practice in 1787, having previously served in the office of selectman of Epping and representative in the State Legis- lature. The latter office he held for eight years, and was speaker in 1791 and 1797. In 1798 he received the commission of solicitor for Rocking- ham County. In June, 1802, he was chosen to fill the vacancy in the Senate of the United States caused by the resignation of James Sheafe, and held his seat until March, 1807.

He was chosen a State Senator in 1810 and 1811, and presided over the Senate both of those years. He was elected governor of the state in 1812, and again in 1816, 1817, and 1818. This was the end of his public service, though he survived until December 23, 1850. For the remainder of his life he lived in retirement on his farm, surrounded by his family, and deriving great enjoyment from his large and well-selected library and from his literary labors. He wrote and published various essays of a historical, practical character, and prepared and left in manuscript a series of valuable biographical sketches of Americans of note of his own and earlier times. These would have been given to the public had not the various biographical dictionaries and works of a similar character occupied so fully the field of his labors.

As a lawyer Governor Plumer was diligent, careful, and sagacious. He won his laurels among no mean competitors, the bar of Rockingham and

HISTORY OF ROCKINGHAM COUNTY

Stratford Counties during the period of his active practice containing some of the foremost lawyers of their time in the country. In all the relations of life he was respected, even by those whose sympathies were, by reason of political disagreement, turned most widely in other directions. .

William Plumer, Jr., son of the preceding, was born in Epping, Febru- ary 9, 1789, was a student in Phillips' Exeter Academy and in Harvard College, whose diploma he received in 1809. He completed his legal studies under the tuition of his father in 1812, and was admitted to the bar, but he never could be styled an active practitioner. He was essentially a student, and was far more interested in literary work and in public questions than in the pursuits of his profession.

In 1816 he was appointed United States commissioner of loans for the State of New Hampshire, and as such resided in Portsmouth for above a year, and until the office was abolished. In 1818 he was chosen a repre- sentative in the State Legislature, and the same year was elected a repre- sentative in the Congress of the United States, where he remained by suc- cessive re-elections for six years. In 1824 he was chosen, on the part of the New Hampshire Senate, United States Senator, but the House failed to concur. In 1827 and 1828 he was a member of the New Hampshire Senate, and in 1827 he declined the appointment of United States district attorney. After this Mr. Plumer appeared seldom in public, though he occasionally took part in popular meetings and on occasions of unusual interest. He lived in much domestic happiness at his home in Epping, and employed himself in reading and in literary composition. Several poems of his were published, and others privately printed for distribution among his many friends. He also prepared a valuable biography of his father. His last public labors were in the State Constitutional Convention of 1850-51, and he died three years later, September 18, 1854.

Hiram Osgood was a native of Loudon, and commenced the law busi- ness in Epping about 1823. After remaining there about a dozen years, during which time he sustained a highly respectable character, he emigrated to Michigan, where he died in 1840.

Enoch Bartlett was a son of Hon. Bradbury Bartlett, of Nottingham, and commenced practice in Epping about 1845, but remained there only a couple of years before.he went to Lawrence, Mass., and opened an office. He was quite a successful practitioner, and was elected mayor of the city, but died in 1855.

James McMurphy was a partner of the preceding, and continued in busi- ness in Epping after Mr. Bartlett's departure until his death, about 1855. Mr. McMurphy was a man of decided ability, had gained a respectable posi- tion as a lawyer, and was a growing man at the time of his decease, which occurred while he was only in middle age.

EXETER

Nicholas Perryman. The first educated lawyer in Exeter was Nicholas Perryman, a native of Devonshire, England, born December 24, 1692. He came to this country young, after the death of his parents, married Joanna,

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daughter of Stephen Dudley, about 1717, and was in practice in Exeter between 1720 and 1730. His name appears pretty frequently in suits after that date, and he did much of the conveyancing of his time. In 1744 and 1746 he appeared in behalf of Exeter in divers contested matters wherein the town was interested. He was evidently a leading man, and took a promi- nent part in the affairs of the community.

He had several children, only one of whom arrived at maturity, Joanna, who married Noah Emery, Esq. Mr. Perryman died August 9, 1757.

Noah Emery was a son of Daniel Emery, of Kittery, Me., and was born December 23, 1725. He studied law with Nicholas Perryman, Esq., whose son-in-law he became, and was in practice in Exeter before 1769. Dur- ing the Revolutionary war he occupied important and confidential positions in the new government. He was repeatedly chosen delegate from Exeter to the Provincial Congress, and was made clerk thereof, and acted on the committee to draw up a form of government for the colony. He was appointed clerk of the Court of Common Pleas in 1776, and continued to hold the office till 1787, near the time of his death, and was succeeded in the office by his son, who bore the same name.

William Parker, Jr., was the son of Hon. William Parker, of Ports- mouth, an eminent judge of the Superior Court. He was born in 1731, graduated from Harvard College in 1751, and was admitted to the bar in 1765. Commencing practice in Exeter, he succeeded his father as register of probate in 1776, and discharged the duties of the office until his death in 1813. He was also appointed a judge of the Court of Common Pleas in 1790, and served in that capacity until 1807.

Judge Parker was respectably learned in his profession, and through his long life did much business in it, but on account of constitutional diffi- dence appeared little in the courts. It is said he never argued a cause to the court or jury, but he was an excellent conveyancer and a safe and judicious counselor, and found abundant professional occupation outside the courts. He was a man of bright parts and unbending integrity, and though he looked after his clients' interests faithfully, was very easy towards his own debtors. He died June 5, 1813.

Oliver Peabody, eldest son of a farmer of the same name, was born in Andover, Mass., September 2, 1753, graduated at Harvard College at the age of twenty, studied law with Hon. Theophilus Parsons, of Newbury, Mass., and settled in Exeter about 1781. He was soon brought into public notice. He received the appointment of solicitor August 6, 1789, was elected state senator in 1790, and the same year was constituted judge of probate for the County of Rockingham, which office he filled until June, 1793. In 1793 and 1794 he was again a member of the State Senate, and in the latter year president of that body. Being chosen state treasurer he resigned the office of senator, and continued in the former office for nine years. In 1805 he was appointed sheriff of the County of Rockingham, and discharged the duties of the position for five years. In 1813 he was again chosen to the Senate, and was its presiding officer, and the same year was made a justice of the Court of Common Pleas for the Eastern Circuit, holding the position until 1816. Three times he was chosen an elector of

HISTORY OF ROCKINGHAM COUNTY

President of the United States, viz., in 1796, 1800, and 1808. He died August 3, 1831.

Judge Peabody was gifted with excellent natural advantages, improved by study and cultivation. In all the various official positions which he sus- tained he exhibited the capacity and qualities needed for their satisfactory administration. He was not a contentious lawyer, and rarely took part in the trial of causes in court, but he drew many writs and conducted a large office business to the contentment of his clients. He was formed by nature for popularity. Handsome in person, graceful in manner, with a mild temper and a social disposition, he won the regard and conciliated the good will of all. He could not have an enemy. His name naturally suggested itself for new positions of trust, and while few objected, he attracted warm friends and zealous partisans, who easily carried his election or appoint- ment, so that a large portion of his active life was spent in the service of the public. He was the father of an interesting and gifted family, on whose education he spared no expense, and in whose society he enjoyed the chief happiness of his later years.

Nathaniel Parker, son of Judge William Parker, Jr., was born in East Kingston, October 22, 1760, and studied law in the office of his father, settling in practice at Exeter. He represented that town in the Legislature, and after performing the functions of deputy secretary of state for some years was then made secretary in 1809. He died in 1812, leaving no descendants.

George Sullivan, a native of Durham, and a son of Gen. John Sullivan of the Revolution, was born August 29, 1771, and was a graduate of Harvard College, of the class of 1791. He prepared himself for his pro- fession under the tuition of his father, and made Exeter his home. He was appointed solicitor for Rockingham County in 1802, and held the office till 1805. In 1811 he was elected a member of Congress for two years, and in 1814 and 1815 he was chosen to a seat in the New Hampshire Senate. Before this time, in 1805, he had received the appointment to the state attorney-generalship,-which for three generations has been held long and creditably in the Sullivan family,-and occupied it for two years. After- wards, in 1815, he was reappointed and administered the office for twenty years more. He resigned the place in 1835, on the passage of a law increas- ing the salary but prohibiting the incumbent from engaging in practice in civil causes. Mr. Sullivan's services were in too much demand by suitors to allow him to confine his attention solely to the criminal business. He died April 14, 1838, highly respected throughout the state. His private, professional, and public character were alike unblemished. His intellectual capacity, his legal acquirements, and his honorable course of practice placed him in the foremost rank of New Hampshire lawyers, while the charms of his sweet voice, his graceful gesticulation, and his eloquent periods gave him a great advantage over his less favored competitors. Though of ardent temperament, and never shunning a contest, he was as ready to forgive as to take offense; the only unpardonable sin in his eyes was mean and under- hand dealings. He was above all tricks and artifices. The traditions of

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his career that yet linger in the bar are all as creditable to his high sense of professional honor as to his mental force and moving eloquence.

Solon Stevens, born in Charlestown, October 3, 1778, graduated from Dartmouth College in 1798, read law with Hon. Benjamin West, and settled in Exeter in 1804. He remained there but a few years, when he removed to Boston, and soon returned to his native town, where he died August 29, 1809.

Jeremiah Smith, a son of William Smith, was born in Peterborough, November 29, 1759. He entered Harvard College in 1777, and about the same time served for two months in the army, being present and wounded at the battle of Bennington. He afterwards migrated to Rutgers College, in New Jersey, and graduated in 1780. He was for a time engaged in teaching, and then studied law, entering the bar in 1786, and establishing himself in his native town. He was sent as representative to the Legisla- ture in 1788, 1789, and 1790, and as delegate to the State Constitutional Convention in 1791-92. In 1790 he was chosen representative in the United States Congress, and served until he resigned his seat to accept the appoint- ment of United States district attorney for New Hampshire in 1797. The same year he changed his residence to Exeter. In 1800 he was commis- sioned judge of probate for Rockingham County, and discharged the duties of the position about two years. In 1801 he received from President Adams the appointment of United States circuit judge and entered upon its duties, but in a few months the law which established the court was repealed and his office terminated. In 1802 he was elevated to the dignity of chief justice of the Superior Court of the State, and administered the office with eminent ability until his resignation, on account of ill health, in 1809. The next year he was elected governor of New Hampshire, and held the office for one year. He was replaced as chief in 1813 upon the bench of the highest state court, and continued as such until 1816, when a radical change of the judicial system of the state resulted in the removal of all the judges.

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History of Rockingham County, New Hampshire and representative citizens, Part 6

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