History of Rockingham and Strafford counties, New Hampshire : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 129

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton)
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis
Number of Pages: 1714

USA > New Hampshire > Strafford County > History of Rockingham and Strafford counties, New Hampshire : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men > Part 129
USA > New Hampshire > Rockingham County > History of Rockingham and Strafford counties, New Hampshire : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men > Part 129

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

1842-43. James Foss.

1839. Georgo Lane.

RESIDENCE OF JAMES E. ODELL, STRATHAM, ROCKINGHAM CO., N. H.

547

STRATHAM.

been occasioned by the adjournment of the Assembly from time to time by the Governor.

Military Record-Revolution-Rebellion .- The following is a list of soldiers from Stratham who died in service during the Revolutionary war :

Williamu French.

Julin Goss.

Josiah Piper.

Julin Foss.

William Brasbridge.

Joseph Thurston.

John Tilton.

Joseph Burleigh.

Thomas Wiggin.

Levi Chapman.

Joseph Jewelt.

Coher Wiggin.

John Taylor.

Nicholas Mason.

Robert Kimball.

War of the Rebellion .- Names of soldiers from Stratham who served in the war of the Rebellion.

Horace J. Willey.

Alvin S. Wiggin.

Levi W. Colbath.

Henry F. Brown.

Josiahı N. Jones.

2 William M. Upton.

1 J. Osborne Jones.

Charles 1I, Plaisted.

George II. Ruudlett.

I William II. Hawkins.

1 Oliver S. Pearson.

Charles II. Chase.

1 Howard M. Chase,

1 John L. Chase.

John W. Mason.

Thomas IT. Brown.

George F. Smith.

John Sanborn.

Alexander Moore.

1 George W. French.

Grorge B. Wiggin. Jonas Pearson.

Charles W. French. Daniel J. Wiggin.

William Rodman.

Alonso Wentworth.

Charles A. Lord.

William Wentworth.

Samuel B. T. Goodrich.

Samnel M. Pearson.

4 Howard M. Rundlett.

Robert Miles.

Charles Il. Robinson.

Thomas Barker.

William II. Huntress.

Jacob Wentworth.

Rufus L. Jones.

Lawrence B. Otis.

James M. Bowley.

Charles Midwood.

Walter S. Weeks.

3 John W. Chase.

William Il. Yeaton.

Levi Chase.

5 Ezra Bartlett.

Physicians .- Richard Rnst, Samuel Shepherd, James Odell, Josiah Bartlett, Josiah Bartlett, Jr., and George II. Odell.

Garrison .- The house of John H. Dearborn, a hun- dred and sixty years ago or more during the Indian troubles, was a garrison, a nightly resort for safety to the people of that neighborhood, It is well preserved, although perhaps the oldest house in town. Five generations at least of the Dearborn family have had their home in this house. A very full and interesting record of the seasons, crops, storms, droughts, earth- quakes, diseases, deaths, and other events was made and preserved in this family, commencing more than one hundred and thirty years ago. The record is in a very neat and legible hand, made by the great-grand- father and grandfather of the present Mr. Dearborn, . commencing in 1748 and ending with 1800.

1 Died in the service.

2 Mortally wounded at first battle of Bull Run.

3 Lientenant heavy artillery.

4 Assistant Surgeon United States navy.

5 Ensign on tho " Kearsarge" at the capture of the " Alabama."

The following are some of the earlier records: "1748. A tedious cold winter, by reason of much snow and bad passing, as ever was known by any person now living. The cold began the 3rd of De- cember, 1747, and hekl twenty-six days; after that, the deep snows began to come, and continued four months, so exceeding deep, there was scarcely any passing from house to house. Twenty-five snow storms this winter, which contained about twelve feet of snow in depth; middling crops of corn, but the extreme drought hurt the grass. Seventeen deaths.

" 1749. A comfortable winter, but in April came on a most distressing drought, exceeding that of last year, which cut off our English corn and grass, that we had but little hay, and cattle ready to perish for want of feed. Indian corn seemed almost past recovery, but a great rain on the 5th of July revived it, so that we had the best crop ever known, which was the principal support of man and beast through the year. 'Tis won- derful to see people strive to keep their cattle alive ; many go forty and fifty miles into the country to cut meadows, and drive them into the woods to browse them ; some pick leaves off the trees and carry them into their barns for cattle to live on in the winter. Twenty-six deaths.

" 1750. A hard winter; hay scarce; cattle are kept alive by corn and browse. A vast many bass fish up our river ; a frnitfnl summer. Twenty-six deaths.

" 1751. Uncommon mild winter, so that the ferry- boat crossed the salt river every month in the winter ; a wet summer ; great crops of grass, middling crop of corn. Fifteen deaths.

" 1752. A more than common cold winter, con- tinning cold for two full months, and froze so hard that it was the common practice to go with sleds and sleighs from Boston to Castle William, and the ves- sels all froze into the river ; a great crop of hay and a great prospect for corn, but on the 29th of August a severe frost killed the stalks, and it immediately turned white, also killed almost every green thing ; corn being then in the milk was so blasted there was scarcely any sound corn that year for seed, and the spring and summer following there was such a scarcity of food, both corn and meat, that it would make al- most the hardest heart ache to hear the complaints of multitudes of people ready to famish for want of food, begging for a handful of corn ; but in the sum- mer of 1753 corn came over sea and supplied many. A very sickly time in Boston and towns adjacent, with the smallpox, throat distemper, and mortal fevers. Twenty-three deaths.

" 1753. An open winter, so that boats passed from Exeter to Portsmouth ; plentiful crops of corn and grass ; a very sickly year through the country. Fifty- seven deaths.

"1754, A very moderate winter ; a cold day came on suddenly the 22d of January, in which many peo- ple out a-fishing and otherwise exposed perished; a fruitfnl summer. Thirty-eight deaths.

1 Jolin H. Chase.

Jolın L. Sinclair. Robert Innis.

John Murphy.

1 John II. Whidden.

] Bennet Leighton.

1 Cassius C. French.

Jeremiah H. Jones. Frank L. Rundlett. George Dearborn. John W. Bride. George Smith. George Chapman,

548

HISTORY OF ROCKINGIIAM COUNTY, NEW HAMPSHIRE.

" 1755. Remarkable for earthquakes throughout the world : in particular, Nov. 1, Lisbon sunk, in which ten thousand people lost their lives, and the 18th of the same month, the greatest ever known in New England, at two o'clock in the morning. Fonr- teen deaths.

" 1756. A fourth open winter, many people plowed and fenced in February ; as good carting as in sum- mer ; a fruitful year : unfortunate in the war ; four- teen deaths in town, four in the war.

" 1757. A hard winter, much snow ; great scarcity of hay; very sharp drought in summer which cut short the fruits of the earth ; a terrible sickly time with fevers. Thirty-six deaths.

" 1758. A very severe winter ; deep snows and the most difficult passing that has been for ten years, the Jatter end of March the snow being three or four feet deep and hard like ice, and people sledding upon it over the fences. A bad. whooping-cough among children. Successful in war this year. Thirty deaths."

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.

EZRA BARKER.

Ezra Barker, son of Levi and Mary (Wiggin) Barker, was born in Stratham, N. H., on the old Barker homestead, on the 22d of May, 1803.

Ilis father was a son of Ezra Barker, born in 1769, and died in 1841. Levi was twice married,-first to Mary Wiggin, by whom he had eight children, viz. : / Mark, George, Mary, Elizabeth, Nancy, Ezra, Abby, and Martha J., all born in Stratham, and all have died except, Ezra. Mr. Barker was a farmer by occu- pation, and a Republican in politics. He was select- man several years, and member of the Legislature two years. He was a member of the Baptist Church, and was liberal towards all benevolent institutions. Ilis wife died' July 15, 1819, aged fifty-two years, and he married for his second wife Mehitabel Clark, who survived him.

Ezra Barker, Sr., born in 1720, died in 1800. He had two children, viz. : Levi and a daughter, name not known.

Ezra Barker, Jr., spent his boyhood on the old farm in Stratham, attending the district school winters and working on the farm summers. This was supplemented by a few terms at the academy in Green- field, N. II. He remained at home, taking charge of the farm and his* aged parents. till their death, when he came in possession of one-half of the farm, and by purchasing the other half of the heirs the entire homestead of some two hundred acres. Early in life he planted a nursery, and sold his trees of various kinds all through New England ; thus he made his first money outside of legitimate farming. He has always been considered one of the best farmers in Stratham, and one of its shrewdest men.

He has been very successful at whatever he has undertaken, and now (1882) is one of the wealthiest, if not the wealthiest man in town. He never mar- ried, but has lived a quiet, unostentatious life. lle is a bondholder in various railroads, and a stockholder in twenty-two banks. In politics he is a Republican. He has never been an aspirant for official honors, preferring the quiet home life of the intelligent New England farmer.

While he is not a member of any religious organ- ization, still he cherishes the faith of his fathers, and is a supporter of the Baptist Church.

Mr. Barker is a man of strong convictions, and has the courage of those convictions. He possesses great force, and has always carried through successfully whatever he has undertaken. Industry and economy have been the cardinal principles actuating him through a long life made successful by them. lle reviews the past with no apprehension of the future, and to-day (1882), thongh nearly seventy-nine years of age, retains all the vigor of youth. He is the youngest man for his years that the writer remembers having ever seen.

George Barker married Mary Piper, and had ten children, viz. : Mary A. (deceased), Albion, Caroline, George M., Louisa, John H., Thomas, Levi, and two others.

George Barker was a farmer in Stratham, and died in 1874.

Mary Barker, daughter of Levi, married Capt. George Lane, of Stratham, and has two children, viz. : Amanda and Henry.

Elizabeth Barker, daughter of Levi, married Ed- mond J. Lane, and has one son, Edmond B.

THIE WIGGIN FAMILY.

This name is common only in New Hampshire, and is seldom met with in this country out of New Eng- land.

Stratham has for nearly two centuries been the seat of the family, and it is thought that at this time more than half the inhabitants of that ancient town are the lineal descendants of Thomas Wiggin, who was the first of the name in this country, and probably the ancestor of all who now bear it,-at least, in the Northern States.

This gentleman came to New Hampshire in 1631, as agent for the proprietary for the Upper Plantation, embracing Dover and Stratham, with part of New- ington and Greenland. After spending a year or two here, he returned to England on the business of the province, and by his "good testimony," as Governor Winthrop says, "in behalf of the Massachusetts colony, did much to avert the evils that threatened it from the enmity of Georges and Mason. On his re- turn to New Hampshire he brought with him a con- siderable number of families from the west of Eng- land, some of whom were of good estates and some

Ezra Barker

Caleb Ligyin

549

STRATHAM.

account for religion." Mr. Leveredge also accompa- nied him. He was a worthy Puritan minister, but the colony did not feel able to support him, and he soon removed to Massachusetts. Governor Wiggin was continued at the head of the plantation under the Lords Say and Brook, until the people of Dover displaced him and elected that factious demagogue and immortal minister, Burdette, for their Governor.

Upon the union of this province with Massachu- setts Wiggin was appointed a magistrate. He was a deputy to the General Court from Dover in 1645, and from 1650 to 1664 was one of the assistants,-the only one at that time from New Hampshire. Ile was one of the principal men of the province during his life, and seems to have enjoyed much of the confidence and respect of the community. He did not, however, escape envy and abuse, but he found himself sus- tained not only by his own consciousness of good in- tentions, but by the good opinion of those who knew him and by the tribunals to which an appeal was occasionally made for the punishment of libelers. Governor Wiggin died about the year 1667. ITis wife was Catherine, but her maiden name is unknown. He was probably married in England, upon his re- turn there in 1633. He had two sons,-Andrew and Thomas. The former was born about 1635, and the latter about 1640.

Andrew Wiggin, the eldest son of Governor Thomas, was born in 1635. He married Hannah Bradstreet, a daughter of Governor Simon Bradstreet, of Andover, Mass., about the year 1659. Her mother was Ann Dudley, daughter of Governor Thomas Dudley, cele- brated for her accomplishments and poetical genius. A small volume of her poetry was published, and was perhaps the first effort of the American muse given to the public through the press.

On the 4th of June, 1663, Thomas Wiggin and Catharine, his wife, gave to their son Andrew a deed of all that land ealled or known by the name of Squamscott, being three miles square or thereabouts. Mr. Wiggin was not much in public life, but in private life he was highly regarded, and considered as a sort of patron of the Quamscott.

Mr. Wiggin died in 1710, at the age of seventy-five. His wife died about three years before him. His children were Simon, Thomas, Andrew, Jonathan, Abigail, Mary, Dorothy, Sarah, and another daughter who was the wife of Samuel Wentworth, but whose Christian name we have not been able to learn.

1. Thomas, the eldest son of the first Andrew, was born March 5, 1661. He married Martha Denison, a daughter of John Denison, of Ipswich, and grand- daughter of Maj .- Gen. Daniel Denison and Patience, his wife, who was a daughter of Governor Dudley. The mother of Mrs. Wiggin was Martha, a daughter of Deputy Governor Synods, of Massachusetts. Mr. Wiggin died early in life, leaving but one child, Hannah. His widow married Capt. Jonathan Thing, of Exeter, in July, 1693, and by him had one child,

Daniel, born May 12, 1694. Capt. Thing died Oct. 31, 1694. ITer third husband was Matthew Whipple, of Ipswich. She died Sept. 12, 1728.

2. Simon, second son of the first Andrew, was born April 17, 1664. The name of his first wife is un- known, who was the mother of his children. His second wife was Catharine, widow of Robert Tupton, who took the name of Mason. She was originally Catharine Wiggin, daughter of Thomas, a son of Governor Thomas Wiggin. He died about 1720. His last wife died in 1738. In her will she speaks of her daughter Elizabeth, wife of Walter Philbrick, and of her grandsons, John Tufton, Thomas Tufton, and Tufton Philbrick. The children of Capt. Simon Wiggin were :

1. Hannah, who probably married either William Cogswell, March 15, 1722, or George Veasey, Dec. 17, 1719. Her cousin Hannah, daughter of Thomas, it is supposed, married the other.

2. Deborahı.

3. Simon (lient.) was born Aug. 12, 1701, and died Ang. 11, 1757. He married Susannah Sherburne, who was born March 13, 1703, and died July 9, 1763. His children were:

1. Simon, Esq., was born March 4, 1734. He mar- ried Hannah Marble, of Bradford, Mass., July 22, 1756, and died Oct. 11, 1823. His wife died Nov. 9, 1811, aged seventy-five. Their children were :

1. Capt. Simon, born 5th January, 1759. Ile mar- ried Joanna Thurston, of Exeter, who was born Sept. 15, 1765, and of their children were William Henry, who married Mary Ann Shackford, and Sarah Jane.

2. Anna, born April 15, 1760, wife of Noah Robin- son, Esq., of New Hampton.

3. Sarah, born June 5, 1762, wife of Daniel Hilton, of Newmarket, and mother of Nancy and Charlotte, wife of Dr. Odell.

4. Hannah, born Sept. 24, 1764, wife of John Smith, of Exeter.

5. Betty, born -, 1766, wife of Benjamin Clark and mother of, 1, Elizabeth, who married Andrew Lane; 2, Benjamin Franklin, who married Elizabeth Wingate ; 3, Daniel ; and, 4, David, of District of Co- lumbia, both attorneys-at-law.

3. Hannah, daughter of the first Andrew, was born Ang. 10, 1666, and is probably the one who married Samuel Wentworth, son of Elder William Went- worth. She died prior to the year 1704, and is not named in her father's will, but her son Samuel has a legacy. This son was a merchant in Boston, and died about the year 1715, and his father administered on his estate, a part of which is inventoried as land given to the deceased by his grandfather, Andrew Wiggin.

4. Mary, daughter of the first Andrew, was born - , 1668. She married Capt. Jeremy Gilman, a son of Moses and grandson of the first Edward Gilman, of Exeter. Their descendants are numerous; among them were Col. Samuel Gilman, of Newmarket, and

550

IIISTORY OF ROCKINGHAM COUNTY, NEW HAMPSHIRE.

afterwards of Tamworth. and who was trustee of Gov- ernor Wentworth's estate on his leaving the country ; Col. Israel Gilman, of Newmarket; Col. David Gil- man, of Tamworth ; Bradstreet Gilman, Esq., of New- market, and the late Deacon Samuel Gilman, of Exeter.

5. Abigail, daughter of the first Andrew, married William French, of Stratham.

6. Dorothy, was the wife of - Gilman.

7. Sarah, was the wife of William Moore, whose children were William, Esq., Mary, and Jacob B. Moore, late of Concord, and now of New York.

8. Jonathan, son of the first Andrew, died in the spring of the year 1838. His children were, 1, Sarah, wife of - Hill; 2, Anna, wife of Joseph Jewett; 3, Mary, wife of - Perkins; 4, Hannah ; 5, Lydia ; 6, Hannah ; 7, Andrew Wiggin, Esq.

The latter was born March 27, 1719. He married Anna Ross. Second wife was Mehitable Moody. On the 12th of September, 1751, he married Mrs. Dorothy Sweat, who was born Feb. 26, 1727.

Andrew Wiggin died 1774. His children were by his last wife :

1. Andrew, born July 14, 1752, and died Jan. 22, 1836. He married Mary Brackett, of Greenland, on the 29th of January, 1774. Their daughter, Mary, was born Oct. 9, 1780, and died June, 1832. She was married to George Hilton, E-q., of Newmarket, July, 1803, and was the mother of George O. Hilton, who married Nancy Walker, of Portsmouth. The latter's children are Mary Miltimore and George William. Andrew Wiggin's second wife was Mary, the daugh- ter of Hon. Paine Wingate, born July 12, 1766, mar- ried Jan. 6, 1788. Their children were (1) Harriet, born Oct. 27, 1788, died April 6, 1836; (2) Caroline, born April 20, 1790, died June 19, 1817; (3) Andrew Paine, born Sept. I, 1791, married to Mrs. Olive Gilbert Jan. 23, 1821 ; she died Dec. 31, 1822; (4) Eliza, born Feb. 23, 1794, married to Mr. Andrew Taylor April 23, 1820. Their children are Andrew Bartlett, Charles Green, and George Osgood. (5) Caleb, born Jan. 8, 1796; (6) Sarah B. Wiggin, born Aug. 19, 1803, married to A. W. Miltimore May 13, 1827.

Caleb Wiggin received a common-school education and one year at Phillips' Academy, at Exeter, N. II. He has always been a farmer on the home farm in Stratham. In politics a Republican. He was cap- tain of a State militia for many years. His father was a major.

lows: First, James ; second, Jonathan, a colonel in the Revolutionary war, and settled in Stratham; and third, Abednego, who lived in Stratham, Ports- mouth, New York City, Ohio, Pittsburgh, Pa., and finally returned to Portsmouth, where he died in January, 1853. He was a merchant and farmer. Ilis wife died February, 1853. He had a large and intelligent family of eleven children, of whom six are living.

CAPT. J. E. ODELL.

Capt. James E. Odell was born Oct. 4, 1813, in Stratham, N. H., and his family on both sides reaches back to old and honored families in the early days. James Odell' was a farmer, and was father of five children,-James2, Mary (Mrs. Zebulon Wiggin), Eliza (died in prime of womanhood), George (a physician in Greenland), Charlotte (who was twice married, (1) to a Boyd, by whom she had one child, Charles A .; (2) Jonathan Leavitt, by whom she had one son, Joseph II. Leavitt). Ile died, highly respected, at the advanced age of seventy-five years.

James Odell2, born in Stratham in 1785, commenced the study of medicine at an early age with Dr. Graves, of Brentwood, and after graduation settled in Strat- ham, where he enjoyed a brilliant though short pro- fessional life, exhibiting unnsnal skill, which at once placed him in the front rank of the medical men of his day. A highly promising career was cut short by his untimely death at the early age of thirty-seven years, in February, 1822. He married Charlotte, daughter of Daniel Hilton, and had children,- James E., Sarah W. (she married John Smart, and had four children, and, with her husband, is dead), William G. (died young), George HI. (died April 24, 1871, aged fifty years, leaving a widow, Louisa (Bar- ker) Odell, and three children,-Mary, George H., and James E. He was one of the most prominent physicians of this part of the State. Mrs. Dr. James Odell was a member of the seet known as Disciples or Christians. After Dr. Odell's death she married Walter Wiggin. They had three children,-IIorace (deceased), Daniel H., and Charlotte (deceased).

James E. Odell was but nine years old when his father died, and he was placed with an uncle, Dr. George Odell. of North Hampton, and afterwards of Greenland. He remained with his uncle until he was eighteen, in the summer working on the farm, and attending school winters. He then went to Hampton Academy, where he was graduated when twenty-two. During a portion of this time he engaged in teaching to obtain funds to defray his expenses while pursuing his studies. Soon after leaving Hampton Academy he began to farm in Stratham. He hired money and purchased the place where his mother resided, so that the family might have a home. He continued teach- ing winters and employing his time in summer in

He has been twice married, -first to Eliza Adams, Oct. 23, 1839. Of this union three children have been born, viz .: Mary C., Anna E., and Caleb M., de- ceased. He married for his second wife Amelia, daughter of Abednego and Mary Sawyer Robinson, of Dover, N. H., June, 1848. ' She was born April 30, 1807. She is descended from James Robinson, a Scotchman, who, in company with two brothers, set- tłed at Portsmouth, in Rockingham County, N. H., ; labor on the farm. He was in humble circumstances, Exeter, and Stratham. The line of descent is as fol- | but by industry, diligence, and economy, accompanied

James W. Rollins

551

STRATIIAM.

by strong energy, coupled with patient endurance, he was enabled to steadily advance in prosperity, and by the exercise of his natural good judgment and shrewd common sense he was prevented from taking any backward steps, and has become not only a wealthy representative farmer of Stratham, but of Rocking- ham County. Sept. 17, 1842, he married Sarah E., daughter of Daniel and Sarah (Clark) Wiggin. She was born in Stratham, July 21, 1823.

Mr. Odell resided on the first place purchased by lim, and already referred to as the home of his mother, until about 1853, when he sold it to his brother George, and purchased another near there, where he resided a few years, which, after developing and improving by the addition of beautiful buildings, he sold to Capt. William Lester. He remained on this place until 1869, when he removed to the place where he now resides. Since that time he has greatly improved its condition, largely remodeled the house and out-buildings, erected one new barn, and in many ways made valuable and permanent improvements, which have so beautified the place as to make it the finest in Stratham, and one of the handsomest farm homes in the county. This is but one of several good farms owned by him, and he has not confined himself to agriculture, but has been successfully engaged in dealing in real estate, stock, and also produce for Bos- ton markets.

In all his business dealings he has been uniformity successful. He was a thorough and able teacher, a tidy farmer, a prudent and careful buyer, and a good salesman, thus combining the elements of a live busi- ness man. He is prompt in meeting engagements, and his word is as good as his bond. He is a stock- holder in the Boston and Maine Railroad, and also in the Savings-Bank of Exeter.

In early life Capt. Odell was a Democrat, but when the Free-Soil elements of both the Whig and Demo- cratie parties united and formed the Abolition party, he joined this party of freedom, and has since been unswervingly a member of it and its successor, the Republican party. Capt. Odell has held all the promi- nent offices in town ; was selectman ten years, town clerk from six to eight years in his early life, and was in the State militia, passing through all the grades from private to captain. In 1867-68 he represented Stratham in the State Legislature.

The captain was for years a member of the Christian Church, but afterwards became an attendant of the Congregational Church, and one of its liberal sup- porters. Mrs. Odell is a Baptist.

This worthy couple have no offspring, but their de- chining years are cheered by an adopted daughter of amiability and decided musical talent. Her name is Belle.

Capt. Odell has filled his position in life with the full stature of a man, and is blessed by the esteem and confidence of a large circle of friends belonging to the better class of the citizens of his State.

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History of Rockingham and Strafford counties, New Hampshire : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 129

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) Publication date: 1882 Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis Number of Pages: 1714

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton)
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis
Number of Pages: 1714