History of Strafford County, New Hampshire and representative citizens, Part 3

Author: Scales, John, 1835-1928
Publication date: 1914
Publisher: Chicago : Richmond-Arnold
Number of Pages: 988

USA > New Hampshire > Strafford County > History of Strafford County, New Hampshire and representative citizens > Part 3

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).

General Sullivan was a great lawyer, a great soldier and a sound patriot. He was an important factor in a multitude of important events from 1774 to his death in 1795, when he was only fifty-five years old. In 1774 he was a delegate to the first Continental Congress, and headed a party in the earliest armed resistance to the royal authority at Fort William and Mary; in 1775 he was again a delegate in Congress, was appointed a brigadier-gen- eral in the American army, and commanded the New Hampshire troops at Winter Hill; in 1776 he was promoted to major-general, was taken prisoner in the battle of Long Island, exchanged and conducted the retreat of the American troops from Canada; in 1777 he distinguished himself at the battles of Brandywine and Germantown; in 1778 he commanded the army in the Rhode Island campaign; in 1779 he was in command of the expedition which completely wiped out the Indian settlements in Western New York, and that same year he resigned his commission in the army. In 1780 and 178I he was again a member of Congress; from 1782 to 1785, inclusive, he was Attorney-General of New Hampshire; in 1788 he was Speaker of the State House of Representatives, and president of the convention which rati- fied the United States Constitution; in 1789 he was President of New Hamp- shire (as the Governor was then called) and that year was commissioned Judge of the District Court of the United States, which office he held till his death.

Jonathan Rawson; son of Rev. Grindall Rawson; born in Yarmouth, Mass., 1759. Served in the Revolutionary war. Studied law with Peter Green of Concord; commenced practice of law at Nottingham, 1783; settled in Dover in 1785 and practiced his profession there until his death in 1794.

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Henry Mellen; son of Rev. John Mellen and brother of the distinguished Judge Mellen of Maine. Born in Sterling, Mass., October 24, 1757; grad- uated from Harvard College 1784. Studied law with Peter Greene, Esq., of Concord. Commenced practice of law at Dover, 1786, and continued here until his death, July 31, 1809. He was a man of much literary ability aside from his professional career.

IVilliam King Atkinson, son of William King of Portsmouth, but as- sumed the name Atkinson by act of the Legislature to comply with a devise of his uncle whereby he inherited the valuable estate of his kinsman, Theo- dore Atkinson, of Colonial fame. He graduated from Harvard College in 1783. Studied law with Judge Pickering of Portsmouth. Settled in Dover in 1787 and continued in practice here until his death, September, 1820. County solicitor, 1789-1803; Justice of Superior Court, 1803-1806; Attor- ney-General, 1807-1812. He was a man of much learning and great force of character.

Charles Clapham was English by birth; studied law in the office of Jona- than Rawson, Esq. He was law partner with Mr. Rawson several years in Dover, until Mr. Rawson's death in 1794. He then left Dover and gave up the practice of law to enter the British Navy in which he rose to the rank of an officer, and died an officer of a man-of-war.

David Copp, Jr., son of David Copp of Wakefield, where he was born in 1770; graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy; studied law with Judge Atkinson; practiced his profession in Dover from 1797 to 1804. Removed to New Orleans, where he died.

Daniel Meserve Durell, son of Nicholas Durell of Lee, where he was born July 20, 1769. He graduated from Dartmouth College in 1794; studied law at Dover with Henry Mellen, Esq .; commenced practice in that town in 1797 and so continued until his death, April 29, 1841. He was member of Congress from 1807 to 1809; member of the Legislature several years; Chief Justice of Circuit Court of Common Pleas, 1816-21; United States District Attorney-General, 1830-34. He died at Dover April 29, 1841.

Oliver Crosby, son of Oliver Crosby of Billerica, Mass., where he was born, March 17, 1769; graduated from Harvard College in 1795; studied law with Judge Atkinson at Dover; commenced practice of his pro- fession at Dover in 1798, and remained in practice there until he removed to Atkinson, Maine, in 1821, where he resided until his death in 1851.

Samuel Tibbetts, son of Maj. Ebenezer Tibbetts of Rochester, where he was born in 1780; graduated from Harvard College in 1799. He was admitted to the bar in 1802, and practiced his profession in Dover until his death in 1810.

Moscs Hodgdon, son of Shadrach Hodgdon of Dover; he was born there ; graduated from Harvard College; studied law and commenced prac-

HISTORY OF STRAFFORD COUNTY

tice in Dover about 1800 and so continued until his death, October 9, 1840. He was author of the law book, "The Complete Justice of the Peace, etc.," which had a large sale.

Moses Leavitt Neal, son of John Neal of Hampton, where he was born in 1767; graduated from Harvard College in 1785; studied law with Hon. John Prentice of Londonderry; commenced practice of law in that town in 1793; removed to Rochester in 1796; practiced his profession there until 1806, when he removed to Dover. Clerk of the New Hampshire House of Representatives, by annual elections, from 1809 until 1828. He died in 1829.

Charles Woodman, son of Rev. Joseph Woodman of Sanbornton, where he was born, January 4, 1792; graduated from Dartmouth College in 1813; studied law with his brother, J. H. Woodman, Esq., and with Hon. Christo- pher Gove. He opened an office in Dover in 1816. Representative in the Legislature, 1820, 1821, 1822; Speaker of the House, 1822. Died October 30, 1822. He was one of the most brilliant young lawyers Dover ever had.

Asa Freeman was born in Hanover, January, 1788, son of Hon. Jona- than Freeman; graduated fromn Dartmouth College in 1810; studied law with his brother, Peyton R. Freeman, of Portsmouth and with Isaac Lyman, Esq., of York, Maine, and first began practice in that village; opened an office in Dover in 1818 and resided here until his death, December 8, 1867, engaged in the practice of his profession. He was member from Dover in the Constitutional Convention in 1850; United States Commissioner several years ; register of probate from 1862 to 1867, when he died.

Daniel Miltimore Christie was born in Antrim, New Hampshire, October 15, 1790, son of Samuel and Ziboah ( Warren) Christie; graduated from Dartmouth College in 1815. He read law with James Walker, Esq., of Peterborough; commenced practice of his profession in York, Maine, in 1818; removed to Dover, N. H., in 1823, where he resided in the practice of his pro- fession until his death, December 8, 1876. He represented Dover in the Legis- lature in 1826, 1827, 1828, 1830, 1831, and several times after that. Dart- mouth College conferred on him the degree of LL. D. in 1857. He was United States District Attorney several years. He was one of the most eminent lawyers the county ever had.

John Parker Hale was born in Rochester March 31, 1806, son of John Parker Hale. He died in Dover, November 19, 1873, of which town he had been a resident from 1827, the year he graduated from Bowdoin College. He studied law with Daniel M. Christie and was admitted to the bar in 1830, and opened his law office in Dover, but soon engaged in politics and was elected Representative in the Legislature of 1832. He was appointed United States District Attorney in 1834 and held the office until 1841; member of Congress, 1842-1846; United States Senator, 1846-1852, being

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Speaker of the House of which he was a member from Dover when he was elected Senator; again elected Senator in 1855 to fill out the unexpired term of Charles Atherton, and in 1858 was chosen for the third time and held his seat in the Senate till the spring of 1865. He was minister to Spain from the spring of 1865, four years. The remaining four years of his life were spent quietly in his home in Dover. He was the Free Soil candidate for President in 1852. Mr. Hale was one of Dover's most distinguished citizens.

Thomas Ellwood Sawyer, son of Stephen Sawyer, was born in Dover November 21, 1798; he studied law with Hon. Charles Woodman and Hon. James Bartlett of Dover and was admitted to the bar in 1825 and opened his law office that year, which was not closed till his death, February 27, 1879. His career as a politician was very notable, more so than his career as an attorney. He was assistant clerk of the House of New Hampshire Legislature in 1822; member of the Executive Council, 1830 and 1831 ; be- tween 1833 and 1850 he was ten times elected Representative to the General Court; member of the Constitutional Convention of 1850; in 1851 and 1852 he was the whig candidate for Governor; in 1867 he was appointed United States Register in Bankruptcy. He was member of the school committee for half a century, and mayor of the city one year, 1857.

John Parker Hale, Sr., was son of Samuel Hale, Esq., of Portsmouth, in which town he was born, February 19, 1775. He read law with John Hale, Esq., of Portsmouth; opened his law office in Rochester in 1801, where he resided in the practice of his profession until his death, October 15, 1819.

John Hubbard White, son of Amos White, was born in Dover, November 30, 1802; graduated from Bowdoin College in 1822 and among his class- mates were Hawthorne, President Pierce and William Hale of Dover; studied law with Charles W. Cutler, Esq., and James Bartlett, Esq., of Dover, and was admitted to the Strafford county bar in 1825. He opened a law office in Dover in 1826 and continued in practice of his profession for more than fifty years. He was appointed postmaster of Dover in 1828. Representative in the Legislature in 1833-1834; register of probate eight years, 1849-1857; judge of police court four years, 1853-1857. He died September 7, 1882.

Richard Kimball, son of Nathaniel Kimball, born March 1, 1798, in North Berwick; graduated from Phillips-Exeter Academy; read law with Hon. Asa Freeman; admitted to Strafford county bar in 1828; practiced law at Somersworth and Rochester but settled in Dover in 1848 and remained in practice of his profession until near the close of his life. He succeeded Judge White as police court judge in 1857, and held the office about ten years. He died in Dover, March 2, 1881.

Charles William Woodman, son of Jeremiah H. Woodman, was born in Rochester, December 7, 1809; graduated from Dartmouth College in 1829;

HISTORY OF STRAFFORD COUNTY

studied law with his father and was admitted to Strafford county bar in 1833; opened an office in Somersworth that year and removed to Dover in 1834 and resided here till his death on Jan. 24, 1888. County solicitor, 1839- 1844; judge of probate, 1846-1853; judge of court of common pleas, 1854- 1855 ; representative in general court, 1861-1862, 1878-1879; commissioner of Circuit Court of the United States many years.

Jeremiah Hall Woodman, son of Rev. Joseph Hall Woodman, born in Sanbornton, April 15, 1775; graduated from Dartmouth College 1794; studied law with Judge Jeremiah Smith at Exeter; commenced practice in Warner in 1799; removed to Rochester, 1806, and practiced his profession until his death, May 8, 1854.

John Riley Varney, son of James B. Varney, born in Dover, March 26, 1819; graduated from Dartmouth College in 1843. For ten years he was civil engineer in construction of railroads and similar work. Clerk of court for Strafford county, 1856-1860. Professor of Mathematics in Dartmouth College, 1860-1863. Studied law while at Hanover and was admitted to Strafford county bar in 1863, and formed a law partnership with United States Senator John P. Hale of Dover. He was postmaster four years; Representative in Legislature, 1856 and 1857; Secretary of the Senate Naval Committee at Washington two years; judge of police court five years; register of probate from death of William C. Woodman till 1874, and again from 1876 until his death, May 2, 1882. From 1868 to 1882 he was editor of the Dover Enquirer, and one of its proprietors. For many years he was a deacon of the First Church. Mr. Varney was one of the brightest scholars, most versatile in talents and shrewdest political leaders Dover has had.

Francis Cogswell, son of Dr. William Cogswell, was born in Atkinson. December 21, 1800; graduated from Dartmouth College in 1822; read law with Stephen Moody, Esq., at Gilmanton; admitted to Strafford county bar, 1825; practiced his profession in Tuftonborough and Dover. Clerk of court, 1833-1841. Quit law in 1842 and engaged in business. Cashier of a bank, director of the Boston & Maine railroad, and for many years president of that road.

John H. Smith, son of John Smith of Rochester, where he was born in 1800; had common school education; read law with J. H. Woodman; admit- ted to the Strafford county bar in 1824; practiced law in Conway, Rochester and Dover. Clerk of court of common pleas from 1841 till his death in 1852, being killed October I at Meredith in an awful railroad accident.

George Thomas Wentworth, son of Isaac Wentworth, was born at Dover, October 17, 1814. Received common school education; read law at Dover and was admitted to Strafford county bar, 1840; practiced his pro-

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fession in Dover many years. Town clerk, 1845-1850; postmaster under Tyler and Fillmore. Died at Dover, July 3, 1874.

Amaso Roberts, son of Ephraim Roberts, was born March 2, 1814; graduated from Dartmouth College in 1838; read law with Charles W. Woodman; admitted to Strafford county bar in 1861; practiced law here till his death, May 8, 1877. Town clerk, 1853-1856; register of probate, 1867-1868.

Luther Dearborn Sawyer, son of Timothy Sawyer of Wakefield, was born there, March 7, 1803; graduated from Bowdoin College in 1828; read law with Sawyer & Hobbs and was admitted to Strafford county bar in 1832; practiced his profession in Ossipee, Sandwich and Dover and was here from 1859 to 1863. Removed to Massachusetts where resided several years. Returned to New Hampshire and was solicitor of Carroll county, 1857-1862; Representative in the Legislature, 1859-1860.

Richard Ela, son of Joseph Ela of Portsmouth, was born about 1796; studied law at Portsmouth with Hon. W. M. Richardson and Hon. Icha- bod Bartlett ; commenced practice of law at Durham in 1820, and continued in practice there until 1832, when he removed to Washington, D. C.

John Adams Richardson, son of Joseph Richardson of Durham, was born there, November 18, 1797; graduated from Dartmouth College in 1819; read law in Haverhill, Mass .; began practice of his profession in Durham in 1823. He remained in practice there until he died in 1870.

Nehemiah Eastman, son of Ebenezer Eastman of Gilmanton, was born in that town, June 16, 1782; was educated at Gilmanton Academy; read law with Stephen Moody, Esq., and commenced practice at Farmington in 1807 and resided there in practice of his profession until his death, January 19, 1856. He was State Senator five years, 1819 to 1824; elected Representative to Congress in 1825 and served two years.

Stephen Mitchell, son of Benjamin Mitchell of Peterborough, where he was born, March 29, 1780; graduated from Williams College in 1801; read law with his uncle, Hon. Jonathan Steele, at Durham; practiced law at Dur- ham; was one of the founders of the New Hampshire Historical Society, and engaged much in literary pursuits as well as law. He delivered the ad- dress of welcome to Lafayette when the great general visited that town in 1825. He died February 15, 1833.

James Bartlett, son of Joseph Bartlett of Salisbury, Mass., where he was born, August 14, 1792; graduated from Dartmouth College in 1812; read law with Moses Eastman, Esq., and Parker Noyes, Esq .; opened an office in Durham in 1815; removed to Dover, 1819, where he was appointed register of probate for Strafford county, which office he held until his death, July 17, 1837. He was Representative from Dover in the Legislature four years, 1823-1826; State Senator, 1827-1828.

HISTORY OF STRAFFORD COUNTY

Amasa Copp was born in Wakefield, October 18, 1788; graduated from Dartmouth College in 1811; read law with William K. Atkinson at Dover; opened an office in Milton in 1815; died January 7, 1871. He was Repre- sentative in the Legislature from Wakefield, where he resided from 1823 till his death.

David Stecle, son of Thomas Steele of Peterborough, where he was born, November 27, 1793; read law with his brother, Hon. Jonathan Steele, at Durham; opened a law office in New Durham in 1826 and continued there until 1850, when he took up his residence in Dover; died at the residence of his son in Dover, July 6, 1882.

Joseph Clark, son of Simeon Clark of Columbia, Conn., where he was born March 9, 1759. He served in the Revolutionary army; was taken pris- oner, a mere boy, and carried to Halifax and to England. Graduated from Dartmouth College in 1785; read law at Durham with Gen. John Sullivan; opened an office at Rochester in 1788 and resided there twenty-five years in practice of his profession; Representative in the General Court 1798 and 1801. Died in Hartford, Conn., December 21, 1828.

David Barker, Jr., son of Col. David Barker of Stratham, where he was born January 8, 1797; graduated from Harvard College in 1815, when eighteen years of age ; read law with John P. Hale, Esq., at Rochester; opened his office there in 1819; Representative from Rochester in the General Court 1823, 1825 and 1826; elected member of Congress 1827 and served one term. Died April 1. 1834.

Noah Tebbetts, son of John Tebbetts of Rochester, where he was born December 26, 1802; graduated from Bowdoin College in 1822; read law with J. H. Woodman, Esq .; admitted to Strafford county bar in 1825; prac- ticed law in Parsonsfield, Maine, seven years, then returned to Rochester and opened an office; he continued to reside in that town until his death September 9, 1844. He was Representative in the General Court in 1842: appointed a circuit justice of the court of common pleas. He was holding court when taken ill and soon died.

John Smith Woodman, son of Nathan Woodman of Durham, where he was born in the historic Woodman garrison, September 6, 1819; graduated from Dartmouth College in 1842. After teaching four years in South Caro- lina, and making a tour of the principal countries of Europe, he commenced reading law with Daniel M. Christie, Esq., at Dover, and was admitted to the Strafford county bar in 1849 and practiced law here until 1851, when he was appointed professor of mathematics at Dartmouth College, which position he held four years; Chandler professor of civil engineering from 1856 to 1870 in the Chandler Scientific School at Dartmouth College, which made him the chief executive officer under President Lord. On account of ill health he resigned in 1870 and died in the ancestral garrison at Durham, May 9, 1871.

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Professor Woodman was a great lawyer and a far greater mathematician and instructor.

Tappan Wentworth, son of Isaac Wentworth of Dover, where he was born February 24, 1802; educated in the public schools of Dover and Frank- lin Academy in the same town; commenced reading law in the office of Hon. William Burleigh, M. C., of South Berwick, Maine, in 1823; admitted to Strafford county bar in 1826; opened an office in Somersworth, where he practiced his profession seven years with marked success. In 1833 he removed to Lowell, Mass., where he practiced his profession forty years, during which time he accumulated a fortune of $300,000, being one of the great attorneys of Massachusetts. He was member of Congress one term. He died in Lowell June 12, 1875, bequeathing the bulk of his fortune to Dartmouth College.

Nathaniel W'ells was born in Wells, Maine, in 1805; graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy in 1826; read law with Winthrop A. Marston at Somersworth; admitted to the Strafford county bar in 1833; was law partner of Mr. Marston a few years; then partner with Hon. Charles H. Bell and later with George William Burleigh of Somersworth. He died August 16, 1878.

Winthrop A. Marston, son of John Marston of Nottingham, where he was born in 1801 : read law in the office of Stephen Mitchell, Esq., at Durham; opened an office in Somersworth in 1830; resided there the rest of his life, except two years spent in Dover. During the later years of his life he was in partnership with Royal R. Eastman, Esq. The firm of Marston & Eastman was a very strong one and had a large practice in and out of the courts in Strafford county and York county, Maine. His death was sudden on March 30, 1851.

Ichabod Goodwin Jordan, son of Capt. Ichabod Jordan of Saco, Maine, where he was born October 6, 1806; graduated from Bowdoin in 1827; studied law and began practice in Somersworth in 1830 and resided there until 1864, when he removed across the rover to Berwick, Maine, where he resided until his death. He was State Senator in New Hampshire in 1853 and 1854.

John Adams Burleigh, son of John Burleigh of Deerfield, was born there January 2, 1800. He was fitted to enter Yale College but took up the study of law instead, under the direction of his brother, Hon. William A. Burleigh of South Berwick, Maine; commenced practice of his profession in South Berwick in 1824 and resided there eight years; removed to Somersworth in 1832, where he practiced law six years, and then became agent of the Great Falls Manufacturing Company, which business he managed with great suc- cess until his death August 22, 1860. He was one of the great managers of mills of the country. 2

HISTORY OF STRAFFORD COUNTY

George William Burleigh, son of John Adams Burleigh, was born in South Berwick, Maine, April 11, 1830; graduated from Dartmouth College in 1851; read law with Wells & Bell at Somersworth; admitted to the Strafford county bar in 1854 and became partner of Mr. Wells, Mr. Bell having withdrawn. He succeeded his father as agent of the Great Falls Manufacturing Company in 1860, which position he held until 1874, when he resigned and resumed practice of law. He was Representative in the General Court of New Hamp- shire in 1863 and 1864; State Senator 1865 and 1866. He was member of the New Hampshire Historical Society and a trustee of Dartmouth College. He was also director in several railroads and in the Great Falls National Bank, and the Somersworth savings bank. He died April 25, 1878.

Royal Eastman, son of Richard Eastman of Talmouth, Maine, was born there January 27, 1816; read law with Nathaniel Wells of Somersworth and was admitted to the Strafford county bar in 1844, and opened an office in that town, where he practiced his profession successfully many years. He was appointed postmaster in 1870 and held the office until his death, February 2. 1874.

William J. Copeland, son of Rev. William H. Copeland, was born in Albion, Maine, January 24, 1841 ; read law with Hon. Increase S. Kimball of Sanford, Maine; was admitted to the bar in Maine about 1860, and prac- ticed his profession in that state until April, 1868, when he opened an office in Somersworth and remained in practice there until his death. He was one of the remarkable men and ablest lawyers at the Strafford county bar. In the later years of his practice he had James A. Edgerly, Esq., as his partner. This law firm was one of the strongest in the county for a number of years. Mr. Copeland died in 1886. Mr. Edgerly continued in successful practice until his death in 1908.

Following are the Strafford county lawyers of the later period, most of whom are living, but only a few reside here at the present time ( 1913). The record is from February, 1894, to August, 1913.

Adams, James B., Dover; Amey, Harry B., Milton Mills; Blackburn, Frank E., Dover; Boyer, Edmund S., Somersworth; Bragdon, Oscar H., Somersworth; Brown, Fred H., Somersworth; Cartier, George E .. Roches- ter ; Cochrane, George E. (dec'd), Rochester ; Dearborn, Samuel L., Roches- ter ; Doe, Robert, Dover; Edgerly, James A. (dec'd), Somersworth ; Emery. Justin A., Rochester ; Fairfield, Orren R., Somersworth; Felker, Samuel D., Rochester ; Fernald, Frank F., Dover; Folsom, Ernest B., Dover: Foote, Arthur L., Dover; Frost, George S., Dover; Gafney, Charles B. (dec'd), Rochester; Galloway, Everett J., Dover; Gunnison, William T., Rochester ; Hall, Arthur W., Dover ; Hall, Daniel, Dover; Hall, Dwight, Dover ; Hall, Joshua G. (dec'd), Dover ; Hayes, Eugene B., Farmington ; Hughes, George T., Dover; Jones, Albert D., Rochester ; Kimball. Henry, Rochester ; Kivel,

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John, Dover; Knapp, William D. (dec'd), Somersworth; Marsh, Forrest L., Milton Mills; Mathews, William S., Somersworth; McCabe, James H., Dover; McGill, Laurence V., Rochester; Moore, Harry V., Somersworth; Nason, William F., Dover; Parker, Samuel S., Farmington ; Pearl, Isaac E., Rochester: Pierce, David R., Somersworth; Pierce, William S., Dover; Pike, Robert G., Dover; Putney, Clifton C., Dover; Roberts, William H., Dover; Russell, William F., Somersworth; Ryan, James, Jr. (dec'd), Dover; Scott, Walter W., Dover; Sherry, Albert P., Dover ; Smart, Elmer J., Rochester; Smith, Harold M., Rochester; Smith, Sidney B., Somersworth; Snow, Leslie, P., Rochester; Stevens, Sidney B., Somersworth; Sunderland, John, Jr., Dover; Templeton, Ernest G., Rochester; Tibbetts, George E., Somersworth; Turner, Henry C., Rochester : Whittemore, Arthur G., Dover; Wiggin, Arthur H., Farmington; Worcester, Joseph H. (dec'd), Rochester ; Wright, William, Rochester.

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History of Strafford County, New Hampshire and representative citizens, Part 3

Author: Scales, John, 1835-1928 Publication date: 1914 Publisher: Chicago : Richmond-Arnold Number of Pages: 988

Author: Scales, John, 1835-1928
Publication date: 1914
Publisher: Chicago : Richmond-Arnold
Number of Pages: 988