History of Rockingham and Strafford counties, New Hampshire : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 29

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 29
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 29

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At last Col. Kent seemed himself to realize his con- dition in a measure, and readily consented to try the experiment of a sojourn at the Washingtonian Home in Boston, which has accomplished so much for so many victims of strong drink. This experiment, to the great joy of his friends, proved his salvation, and from that time until now, with a will and force of character which has been the admiration of all who know his history or have heard his story, he has re- sisted that appetite which was so nearly his ruin.

He soon after reorganized the Washingtonian Total Abstinence Society of Portsmouth, and became its president, and in the winter of 1872 inaugurated a series of temperance meetings. Here as well as else- where his labors were rewarded with marked success, and his eloquent recital of his own terrible experi- ence and his pathetic appeals to the victims of in- temperance in the many places where he has spoken

upon this subject have had a marked effect in check- ing the evil.

His efforts may justly be credited with having in- augurated the great temperance reform movement that swept through this State.

Col. Kent has never abated his zeal in the cause of temperance, and never ceased to lend his purse and a helping hand to all whom he has found struggling against the demon that cursed the best years of his life. He was actively interested in the Portsmouth Temperance Reform Club during its period of useful- ness, and was of great service to it; but in May, 1879, being unable to approve its course in the introduction of to him dubious methods of promoting temperance, in company with others he withdrew from the club, and his public work in this direction ceased. In his private life, however, both by his daily example and his friendly aid and advice, he is constantly reclaim- ing the fallen and starting them anew in the right path.

This sketch, so far as bearing upon the temperance life of Mr. Kent and the causes that led to its adop- tion, would be very incomplete without some allusion to the helpmeet of the subject. Mrs. Kent has shown the love and devotion of a true wife in its noblest con- ception, and it is not an easy task to credit her with the praise she deserves. With a trust in God and a never-erring trust and confidence in her husband, she bore up under the sorrow and affliction that must come hand in hand with the cup. Appeals of love seemed slighted, yet she swerved not a line in the happy duty of reclaiming her husband. And now in these after-years, though late, comes the sweet conso- lation and satisfaction, bringing with them the perfect joy and happiness she sought.

Mr. Kent has an only child, Horace Penniman Kent, who at present holds a position under the United States government at Boston, whose clear head and skillful abilities already developed bid fair to place him in prominent ranks wherever be may cast his lot.

Col. Kent is a brave, true, and honest man, of much intellectual force, great sagacity, energy, and persist- ency, exceptional fidelity to friends and principles, and of aims high and worthy in every respect, a true philanthropist, and generous to a fault. He has done much good service for his city, county, and State, and won victories which attest more than usual strength of character.

MARCELLUS ELDREDGE.

Marcellus Eldredge, one of the successful business men and leading brewers of New England, was born in Chatham, Mass., Nov. 24, 1838. His boyhood was passed in his native town, sharing the advantages of the schools of those days. In 1852 he came to Ports- mouth with his father, the late Heman Eldredge, who conducted a mercantile business in corn and 1 flour, and entered the store as clerk.

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HISTORY OF ROCKINGHAM COUNTY, NEW HAMPSHIRE.

In 1858 Mr. Fisher and Heman Eldredge formed a copartnership for the brewing of ale under the firm- name of M. Fisher & Co., and Marcellus Eldredge was given the position of clerk. His native energy

Mr. Haven has been twice married,-first, May 11, here manifested itself in a remarkable degree. Ile | 1827, to Louisa Sheafe, daughter of James Sheafe, Esq., by whom he had one child. Mrs. Haven died Jan. 31, 1828. Aug. 8, 1832, he united in marriage with Margaret Houston, daughter of John Houston, of Exeter, and their family has consisted of six chil- dren, four of whom survive.

took an active interest in the development of the enterprise, and a few years later found him the active manager of an industry the growth of which had been almost phenomenal. The firm of M. Fisher & Co. continued until 1870, when Fisher's interest was purchased, the firm then becoming H. Eldredge & Son, by whom the business was continued until 1875, when it was organized as a stock company, Marcellus Eldredge being chosen president and treasurer. Illus- trative of the rapid growth of this business, it is stated that from a small brewing of twenty-eight barrels, the first made by M. Fisher & Co., it has increased from time to time until the present establishment has a capacity of three hundred barrels per day of ale and lager.

Mr. Eldredge, although manifesting a lively interest in his adopted city and the public welfare generally, has uniformly declined various overtures to official position, the only exception being in 1877, when he was chosen senator from this a Republican district. Ile is Democratic in politics, but enjoys the respect of all parties.

ALFRED WOODWARD HAVEN.

There is no prouder or more enduring personal record than the story of a self reliant, manly, and successful career. It declares that the individual has not only understood his duty and mission, but ful- filled them. The following biography is highly sug- gestive of these facts.

Alfred Woodward Haven was born in Portsmouth, March 14, 1801, and is a worthy representative of one of the oldest and most honored families of this old commonwealth. He is a son of John Haven, and grandson of the Rev. Samuel Haven, D.D., both of whom were prominent and influential citizens.

Mr. Haven was educated for the legal profession, and in 1825 was admitted to the bar. He retired from the active practice of law in 1834, since which time he has been largely engaged in attending to real es- tate interests, both for himself and others.

He has ever manifested a lively interest in the wel- fare of his native city, and all measures tending to advance the material and religious interests have found in him an earnest supporter. He was an early advocate of the Concord and Portsmouth Railroad, and was president of that corporation from 1847 to 1857, and upon the reorganization of the road in 1859 he was again elected its president, and officiated in that capacity one year. He has also been a director in the Rockingham Bank. Although not an active poli- tician, he has ever taken a deep interest in public affairs, and for four years was chosen by his fellow- citizens to represent the city in the Legislature. He

was a member in 1864-65, 1867-68, and discharged his duties with credit to himself and to the entire satisfaction of his constituents.

CHARLES WARREN BREWSTER.

Charles Warren Brewster was born in Portsmouth, N. II., Sept. 13, 1802, and died Aug. 4, 1868. Ile was the son of Samuel and Mary (Ham) Brewster, and a descendant of Elder William Brewster, of Pilgrim no- toriety.

The following extracts from a biographical sketch prepared by Hon. William H. Y. Hackett for the second series of " Rambles about Portsmouth" com- prehend the life and character of the subject of this sketch.

Having completed his school education, in his six- teenth year, on the 16th day of February, 1818, he began to learn the business of a printer in the office of the Portsmouth Oracle, then published by Charles Turell, and his connection with that paper continued from that day until his death,-a period of more than half a century. When the name of the paper was changed in 1823 to The Portsmouth Journal, it was edited by Mr. Nathaniel A. Haven, Jr., a gentleman of extraordinary literary taste and ability. During his apprenticeship Mr. Brewster wrote more frequently for other papers than for that with which he was con- nected. He took pains with his articles, regarding the exercise as a preparation for the position of an editor. He put most of Mr. Ilaven's editorial articles into type, and had an admiration for his style as a writer, and a veneration for his character as a man, traces of which were seen in his subsequent writings and life.

In July, 1825, Mr. Brewster and Tobias H. Miller assumed the joint proprietorship of the Portsmouth Journal. This connection was maintained for about ten years, when, in 1835, he became sole proprietor and editor. In 1853 be associated with him his son, Lewis W. Brewster, in these positions, who upon his father's death became sole proprietor.

Mr. Brewster married, May 13, 1828, Mary Gilman, daughter of Ward and Hannah Gilman. They had nine children. His wife and four of their children, Lewis W., Charles G., Mary G., and Helen A. G., survived him. At about the time of his marriage he became a member of the North (Congregational) Church, a position which he adorned through the re- mainder of his life.

To the Journal he gave his thoughts, his labors, and his talents. The forty-three volumes of that paper,

Я и Кист-

115

PORTSMOUTH.

commencing in 1825 and ending in 1868, are at once the record of his industry, the illustration of his / taste, the photograph of his character, his real biog- · raphy. During the whole of that period he was the principal writer, and every volume, every number, shows his taste as a printer, his ability as a writer, and his discriminating judgment in making selections. It has been well remarked that the success of an editor depends quite as much on what he keeps out of his columns as what he puts into them. It would be difficult to find a newspaper more free from every- thing offensive to good taste. He aimed to make, and he did make, his Journal a good and valued family paper. Although it was always decided in its polit- ical principles, yet it supported them in a manner so free from bitterness, and was in other respects so ju- diciously managed, that it went into many families in which there was no sympathy with its politics.

Although his paper was the organ in this part of the State of the party to which he belonged, and al- though he gave to his party a firm and uniform support, yet he found more satisfaction in getting up the mis- cellaneous than the political part of his paper. I have, says his biographer, called upon him more than once in the midst of an exciting political campaign, and found him absorbed in writing a " Ramble," or delighted with an ancient manuscript, or some scrap of history or biography.

Mr. Brewster did not regard his paper only or chiefly as a means of making an income, but he viewed it as an instrument through which he was to perform important social duties, He felt as much re- spousible for the influence that his Journal exerted upon the community as for his personal example in his family or upon his employés. And he used every available means to make his influence felt for good. He thought not only the tone of his paper should be pure, but he believed that a correct style in arranging the matter, and beauty in the printing, aided in improving the taste and elevating the morals of his readers. He not only made the duties, toils, and routine of life minister to the formation of his own high character, but he also made them the me- dium of a healthful and beneficent influence upon others.

The publication of a weekly newspaper for a half- century tends to form habits of regularity and rou- tine. In him the tendency to regularity pre-existed ; his occupation merely developed and established it. The idea that he conld be away from his newspaper appeared not to have occurred to him. It would be safe to say that in forty-three years he was not absent from his office on Friday at the making up of his paper more than a dozen times. He allowed himself no relaxation. He did not seem to desire any. He found his pleasure in his toil, his relaxation in his duty, and his happiness in his home. He did not carry the cares of business or the unfinished labors of the day to the fireside.

worked most easily and freely at his office-desk. IIe was as regular in attending church on Sunday as he was in publishing his paper on Saturday. Although not averse to improvements, his tendency was to ad- here to old habits, old principles, old friends, old books, and old ways of making money. For more than forty years he occupied the same office and the same dwelling-house.

To the benevolent organizations he gave his sym- pathy and cordial and liberal co-operation. For more than half his lifetime he was the secretary of the Howard Benevolent Society, one of the best charitable organizations in the city, and for many years treas- urer of the Portsmouth Bible Society: He was for some time superintendent of the Sunday-school con- nected with the North Church.

The " Rambles about Portsmouth" were a labor of love, and, while indicating the direction of his read- ing, they afford a fair and favorable specimen of his. style and taste. Plain Anglo-Saxon language flowed naturally from his pen. He commanded an easy and direct mode of expression, which formed an excellent narrative style. A pleasing story or a bit of romance always attracted him. He rescued it from the past, and lent it fresh charms by the simple, graceful mould in which he cast it. It is worthy of marked com- mendation, however, that he avoided the temptation of giving credence to pure fiction. Whatever was of doubtful origin never gained currency from him with- out being stamped as such. There was the quaint humor of the chronicler, the fidelity of the historian.

His labor in obtaining biographical facts, anecdotes, and incidents, as materials for history, was such as no man would perform unless his heart were in his work. These articles were originally prepared for and pub- lished in his paper, and were compiled, through many years, from all accessible sources, manuscripts, letters, family records, city records, old newspapers, old deeds, wills, tombstones, and the recollections of aged people wbo have passed away. He was a long time in col- lecting the materials-some parts of a " Ramble" would be prepared years before a fact or incident necessary to complete it was obtained. He compared the statement of one aged person with that of another, and, when to be found, consulted contemporaneous accounts and incidents as well as collateral facts.

From these and other sources he obtained merely the elements,-the data and crude material from which he worked. But as piled up on his desk, stowed away in drawers, or bound up for future use, they no more resembled a " Ramble," as the reader now sees it, than the paper-maker's uncleansed rags resembled the fair sheet upon which it is printed. Those unac- quainted with like undertakings can form no adequate idea of the labor, patience, and perseverence neces- sary to prosecute such a work, of the interruptions and delays which attend it, the research and dis- crimination requisite to discover and reproduce a trait

Like most editors, he of character, a telling anecdote or incident, or to con-

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HISTORY OF ROCKINGHAM COUNTY, NEW HAMPSHIRE.

firm or confute a tradition. In all this the family and friends of Mr. Brewster saw him often employed for years. But much of the inward work, which was from time to time, amidst the cares and toils of life, mould- ing the matter thus elaborated into narratives so life- like, so attractive, so genial as often to remind one of the writings of Washington Irving, gave no out- ward token of its process. The structure of these narratives, which is the blending of history, biogra- phy, and romantic incidents, and constitutes the great merit and attractiveness of both volumes of the " Rambles," was in preparation while the writer ap- peared to others to be doing something else or noth- ing,-walking the street, making up his paper, or sitting by the fireside.

Mr. Brewster was a man of marked ability, untiring industry, and high-toned character, but of diffident and retiring habits. He was called, literally called, . to fill several positions of trust. At the time of his death he was one of the trustees of the Portsmouth Savings-Bank. He served for two years as president of the Mechanics' and Manufacturers' Association. He was for thirty-four years secretary of the Howard Benevolent Society, was for several years in one or the other branch of the city government, was represen- tative in the State Legislature in 1846-47, and in 1850, with Governor Goodwin and Ichabod Bartlett, was a delegate from his ward to the convention to amend the State Constitution. He declined being candi- date for other positions, among them that of mayor. In these and the other positions which he filled he discharged his duties with diligence and ability and to general acceptance. He occasionally delivered addresses before the Lyceum, the association of which he was president, and other public bodies both at home and abroad. These addresses were always heard with pleasure, and were marked by good taste and sound thought.

He was not only a good writer, as his forty-three volumes of the Portsmouth Journal and his two vol- umes of " Rambles" will abundantly show, but he was an historian, a lecturer, a biographer, and a poet. His favorite reading was biography and poetry. He was very discriminating and just in his biographical sketches of prominent men and of his townsmen. He had considerable poetic ability, which he exer- cised too rarely, occupying a prominent position in the "Poets of Portsmouth."

It was formerly the custom among the publishers of newspapers to circulate in or with the number of the paper issued on the Ist of January in each year a poetical address to their patrons, called the "carriers' address." Many years ago, and while the late Isaac Hill published the New Hampshire Patriot, he offered a set of Sir Walter Scott's "Poetical Works" for the best "carriers' address" for the then approaching 1st of January. Mr. Brewster, with several others, com- peted for this prize. Among the many addresses offered was one to which Mr. Hill, himself a poet,

gave the decided preference, and it was the same to which the committee afterwards awarded the prize. Mr. Hill, supposing the successful address to have been the production of a lady, remarked that this cir- cumstance would somewhat moderate the disappoint- ment of the unsuccessful competitors. When the award was made and the opening of the envelope revealed Mr. Brewster as the writer, Mr. Hill was quite as much disappointed as any of the authors of the "rejected addresses." He was not more sur- prised to find that the prize was not to be given to a lady than that it was to be given to an editor and a political opponent. The reader will see that he judged much better of the merits than of the source of the successful address. The prize was duly for- warded, and is now a cherished treasure in the library of the family of Mr. Brewster.

The successful address was the " Ilistory of News- Birth of the Press."

From necessity and practice, Mr. Brewster early acquired the habit of writing rapidly. He also had the power of abstraction, and the current of his thoughts and the preparation of his editorial matter were not disturbed or impeded by the clatter of a printing-office. He wrote as he lived, from the light within. Sedate and retiring as he was, he had a fund of humor and wit which he sought rather to repress than exhibit, but which at times enlivened his friends and his paper.

His habits and tastes made him averse to news- paper controversy. What editor in the country of his extended experience has so generally avoided it? When forced into it, however, he was quick to "make the opposer beware" of whom he had attacked. His criticisms were pungent, his wit not seldom caustic. He undoubtedly possessed great powers of sarcasm. That they were used so sparingly, and never by way of display, but invariably in defense of what he was convinced was the right, or in exposing error and deceit, is characteristic of the man.

Mr. Brewster, like many of our prominent and able men, was educated in a printing-office and at the editor's desk. There is something in the constant and powerful pressure upon an American editor, obliging him to record and comment upon the events as they occur, and to discuss those principles which are growing and ripening in the public mind, and bringing him daily to a searching examination of the moral, social, economical, and political problems which crowd and succeed each other with such rapid succession, that tends to quicken his powers and con- centrate his energies, to give a decisive and practical cast to his character, and to force him into promi- nence and success.

This pressure developed Mr. Brewster. He was naturally retiring, unwilling to be before the public. His position compelled him to write, and he was found in this, as well as in all other positions in which he was placed, equal to the demands made upon him.

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ATKINSON.

This discipline made him a good and able writer and author and a successful business man, and gave him the tastes and habits of a scholar, a wide influence, and a high position. The life of an editor makes some persons aggressive and irritable, but Mr. Brew- ster yielded to no such influence. He never alienated a friend or made an enemy. He early formed a plan of life, and faithfully acted upon it to the end. He was more anxious to be right than to be thought so, more intent upon doing his duty than in obtaining a reward for it, thought more of publishing a good than a profitable paper, more of being a useful than a prominent man, and at his death the universal feeling of respect for his memory was his best eulogy.

But the great, rounded, and ripened feature in Mr. Brewster's character, that which as years passed over him in his quiet walk of labor and usefulness, gained, deepened, and fixed the public confidence and respect, was his integrity and purity. He was a remarkable man, not only for his industry and ability, his purity and success, but for his self-culture and wise self-con- trol. His life was harmonious and symmetrical. Ilis impulses were so under subjection that he appeared not so much to resist temptations as to avoid them. He was so diligent in the line of duty that he had as little opportunity as inclination to depart from it. Such a life, sweetening and cementing the domestic and social relations, was as full of happiness as of beauty. He died as calmly and serenely as he had lived, in the enjoyment of the affectionate respect of his townsmen and of the public.

CHAPTER XVI.

ATKINSON.

Early History-Ecclesiastical History-Educational-Atkinson Acad- emy-Individuals who have entered Learned Professions.

ATKINSON is situated in latitude 42° 51', longitude 71° 8', and is about four miles in length and three in breadth, containing six thousand eight hundred acres, and is bounded north by Hampstead, east by Plaistow, south by Haverhill, Mass., and west by Salem and Derry. It is thirty-six miles from Con- cord and thirty-six miles from Boston, on the Boston and Maine Railroad.

It originally was a part of Haverhill, which was settled in 1640. It comprises a portion of the terri- [ gaged Atkinson has been prompt to do its whole duty. tory conveyed to the inhabitants of Pentucket (now Haverhill) by the Indians Passaquo and Saggahew, with the consent of their chief Passaconnaway, by their deed now in existence, dated Nov. 15, 1642.

No settlement was made till eighty-five years later, when, in 1727 or '28, Benjamin Richards, of Roches- ter, N. H., Nathaniel, Jonathan, and Edmund Page and John Dow, from Haverhill, moved into the present limits of the town. When the dividing line between New Hampshire and Massachusetts

was settled, Atkinson, then a part of Plaistow, was assigned to New Hampshire.

Plaistow was incorporated Feb. 28, 1749. Atkinson was separated from Plaistow Aug. 31, 1767, and incor- porated by the Legislature September 3d of the same year.

The increase of population from the first settlement of the town was rapid, and in 1775, eight years after the incorporation of the town, it numbered five hun- dred and seventy-five, more than the average from that time to the present. The population by the cen- sus of 1880 was five hundred and one.

The soil is of an excellent quality, yielding large returns for the labor spent upon it, and the town has long been noted for its superior fruit.

The location of the town is very high, commanding a view of the spires of sixteen villages and of many mountains on every side around it. The air is dry and pure, and Dr. Bowditch, the distinguished physi- cian, has long recommended it as one of the most favorable resorts in New Hampshire for those afflicted with pulmonary complaints.

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History of Rockingham and Strafford counties, New Hampshire : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 29

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