USA > New Hampshire > Hillsborough County > Antrim > History of the town of Antrim, New Hampshire, from its earliest settlement to June 27, 1877, with a brief genealogical record of all the Antrim families > Part 43
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of the few who were pursued by offices and honors, yet hav- ing no relish for them. Every office in the gift of the State is said to have been offered him, and twice the chief-justice- ship of the New Hampshire supreme court was urged upon him. The degree of LL. D. was conferred upon him by his Alma Mater in 1857. He was considered the leader of the New Hampshire bar for a generation, and was one of the very ablest men ever produced in this State. The estimate in which he was universally held, is well expressed in the resolutions entered on the records of the court: -
Resolved, That we have heard with profound sensibility of the death of the Hon. Daniel M. Christie, the oldest and most distin- guished member of this bar, who has by a long life of arduous labor, fidelity to duty, and spotless integrity in every relation of life, adorned and elevated the profession of the law, and imparted dig- nity and luster to the jurisprudence of our State.
Resolved, That in the long, honorable, and conspicuous career of Mr. Christie, - chiefly as a counselor and advocate at this bar, - distinguished by great learning, sound judgment, unwearied indus- try, and unsurpassed fidelity to every personal and professional obligation, we recognize those qualities which entitled him to the respect and veneration which were universally entertained for him ; and that, by his wisdom, prudence, and conscientious attention to all the duties of good citizenship, he exerted a great and salu- tary influence upon the community in which he lived.
Resolved, That we take pride in recording our high estimate of his extraordinary intellectual endowments, his exalted principles, and elevated standard of private and professional morality, and commend his virtues and excellencies of character to the imitation of the members of the profession which he pursued with such assi- duity and such remarkable honor and success.
Resolved, That we deeply sympathize with the family of Mr. Christie in the bereavement which has deprived them of an indul- gent father and faithful friend, and respectfully offer them such consolation as may be found in the heart-felt condolence of the bar, whose leader and exemplar he was for nearly fifty years, and whose affection and veneration he had gained by his pre-eminent abilities and blameless life.
Resolved, That the secretary communicate a copy of these resolu- tions to the family of Mr. Christie, and that the committee present them to the court now in session in this county, with the request of the bar that they be entered upon its records.
These resolutions were put on record in these courts with unanimous approval. They were moved by Hon. Daniel Hall, who paid a beautiful tribute to his old teacher and
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friend. And so, covered with praise and veneration, he has passed away. Mr. Christie m. a daughter of Dr. Wheeler of Dover, and had six daughters, but no sons.]
2. JOSIAH W., [b. Nov. 6, 1793, lived some years on the hill, but settled afterward in the east part of the town ; was a car- penter, a man of boundless work, and great energy and strength of character ; amassed a large property, and was for many years one of Antrim's most prominent and influ- ential men. He d. April 30, 1862, and was one of the first buried in Maplewood cemetery. He m. 1st, Fanny Boyd, March 16, 1824 ; 2d, Mary Bell, May 11, 1830. Each wife had two children, thus : -
Francis B., (b. Oct. 10, 1824; m. Susan H. Emerson of Bos- ton ; was a teacher there; disappeared from that city in 1850, and has not been heard from since.)
Franklin W., (twin brother of above, d. in childhood.)
Dr. Morris, (b. Aug. 29, 1832, studied medicine with Dr. San- born of Newport two years, then studied three years in New York City. Began the practice of medicine in his native town, May, 1860, and has continued with gratifying success till the present time, having a large practice reaching into. many of the adjoining towns, and having fairly won a lead- ing position in his profession. He m. Susan S. Hill of John- son, Vt., July 22, 1863. They have one child, George W., b. Aug. 5, 1868. Dr. Christie is one having honor in his " own country," a liberal giver, and a worker in 'every good cause.)
Mary A., (b. April 7, 1834, m. Thomas B. Bradford of Fran- cestown, in 1861, and lives in that town. They have one daughter, Emma A.)]
3. MARY, [b. Oct. 24, 1795, joined the church in 1815, m. Rev. Levi Spalding Dec. 10, 1818, and sailed as missionary June 8, 1819 ; d. in 1874, after a service of fifty-five years, being the last survivor of the first company of missionaries to Ceylon. She was called by that people, "Our Beloved Mother." Mr. Spalding was born in Jaffrey, in 1791. He graduated at Dartmouth College in 1815, at Andover Seminary in 1818, and entered the service of the American Board at once. On their passage out there was a revival aboard ship and every sailor was converted. Mr. S. wrote a host of tracts in the Tamil language ; was author of
Morris Christie.
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many of their best hymns, translated " Pilgrim's Progress " for them, wrote most of their school-books, and was of incal- culable service to that people. For forty-five years he did not fail to preach a single Sabbath ! He lived to see great success follow his efforts, and great numbers of that people in the fold of Christ. Yet he was a very unassuming and quiet man, making no bluster in all his work. There was something romantic and beautiful in their long life together among the heathen ! They came to love that strange people ; and though here on a visit in ripe years, they chose to go back and die with the charge God gave them. They deserve great credit as pioneer missionaries, and accomplished a blessed work, for which ages to come will honor them. His service was fifty-four years in length in Ceylon. Hed. at the age of 82. Only one of their children survives them.]
4. JANE W., [b. July 19, 1797, m. Matthew A. Fisher of Fran- cestown, Jan. 14, 1817. He died in 1853, aged 68. She is now living in honored old age with her daughter, Mrs. James H. Hall of Brookline.]
5. JESSE, [b. May 17, 1799, m. Zibiah Warren of New Boston, and they are both living in that town, having celebrated their golden wedding April 7, 1875.]
6. SALLY W., [b. May 13, 1801, m. Gilman Clark of Hancock. They have resided many years in Foxcroft, Me. He was for some time a teacher and missionary among the Indians.]
7. HIRAM, [b. April 11, 1803, d. in childhood.]
8. IRA, [m. Anna Collier, an English lady, lived in Dover, and d. there, 1869, aged 62.]
CLARK.
JOSEPH CLARK lived in Antrim several years and was a soldier in the Revolution from this town. For some charge, probably for debt, he was arrested and thrown into Amherst jail; but the case was of so much interest that under date of July 9, 1782, Capt. Frye brings the matter before the committee of the legislature. By some adjustment he was discharged from jail and went to the front, and his land seems to have been taxed to his creditors, as the town " Voted (Aug. 19, 1782) Richard McAllister pay the Reats of Clark's Lot as it was Invoised to him." Joseph Clark's land was on the Contoocook north of Dimon Dodge place, or Cheney's, as shown by a transcript of a road, July 9, 1783, running " Between Chaney's and Jos Clarkes Land to Nathan Austin's Land." He was probably the first settler on the tract afterwards Thomas Jame- son's and David Parker's.
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CALEB CLARK, son of Daniel and Mary (Bancroft) Clark of Temple, and grandson of Samuel and Sarah (Taylor) Clark of Townsend, Mass., was born April 6, 1798. His father died in middle life, and with his mother (who died in 1852, aged eighty-eight) and young sisters he moved to Antrim, in April, 1824, on to the place previous to that date , occupied first by Samuel Sawyer, afterwards by Zadok Reed, and now occupied by L. T. Lovewell. He married Jane Sweetser of Deering (now Bennington), Oct. 31, 1837. They had but one child, a daughter, who died in infancy. Mrs. Clark died May 29, 1861. He died Aug. 31, 1870, leaving a fund of $1,000 to the Center Church, besides various other gifts to charitable purposes. He was a Christian man, highly respected by every one. His four sisters who came to this town with him are as follows: --
Mary Clark was born Aug. 18, 1799, and is the only survivor of the family.
Nancy Clark was born March 1, 1801, and died Nov. 22, 1869.
Hannah Clark was born Oct. 26, 1803, and died Nov. 14, 1869.
Azubah Clark was born June 27, 1804, and died Sept. 5, 1870.
These sisters all lived unmarried, most of the time together, in great quiet, peace, and love, being examplary Christians, very saving, yet lib- eral givers to all benevolent purposes. Each acquired property, and those who are dead each left money for the preaching fund of the Center Church. Mary Clark lives on the place opposite Eben Bass's (house built by Dr. Whiton), which her brother, Caleb Clark, bought a few months before his death, and where he and his sister, Azubah Clark, died within one week of each other. Mary Clark was one of the heaviest givers to the Center vestry, and has been a silent and constant giver to charitable objects. She has lived to see all her family committed to the grave, is now nearly blind, but bearing all her afflictions with fortitude and Christian resignation, and is still a constant attendant on divine wor- . ship, the last of a noble, devoted, Christian family.
WARNER CLARK came here as early as 1834, and soon after com- menced the manufacture of bobbins at the Branch. That he was here thus early is shown by the fact that he was chosen hog-reeve at the March meeting in 1835. He stayed here only a short time, when he moved to Francestown, and was there a prominent man for many years, and filled various offices. He had a partner here by the name of Buss, of whom I have no information.
PRENTISS W. CLARK was born in Brandon, Vt., in 1828, and married Maria White of this town. He is a carpenter by trade, and un- der the firm-name of Clark and Duncan has had a share in most of the building in town for many years. He built his house on Bennington street in 1869. Now occupies the Dea. Baldwin farm. His children are: -
1. HARRY E., [b. in Greenfield in 1853, and m. Mary A. Day of Salem, Mass., in 1876.]
2. JULIA A., [b. May 31, 1860, d. May 27, 1879.]
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3. HARVEY P., [b. April 4, 1863.]
4. MINNIE M., [b. June 7, 1865.]
5. EVA MAY, [b. June 19, 1870.]
CLEAVES.
DR. NATHAN W. CLEAVES was son of Nathan Cleaves, who died in 1812, aged sixty-four. Little is known of his early life, or of where or when he studied for his profession, except that he was for a time under the tutorship of Dr. Jones of Lyndeborough. He came here in 1793 as the successor of Dr. William Ward, being at that time hardly twenty years of age. Soon after he married Jennie Hopkins, a cousin of Esq. James Hopkins and niece of Mrs. Dea. Isaac Cochran. He settled down where Dustin Barrett now lives. Built the large house now standing there. He was smitten down with a fever and died at the early age of thirty-three, leaving six children. Old people have spoken of him as a noble specimen of manhood and virtue; and of his wife as an excellent woman. Was a man of good talents, successful as a physician, and held in high esteem by the people, as one growing up with them, and meeting with them the struggles of the new settlement. Indeed, he got his death by a walk on snow-shoes across lots to see a sick woman in a log house that stood on the mountain northwest of the Artemas Brown farm. At his funeral, April 19, 1807, the snow was four to five feet deep everywhere, covering walls out of sight, and so hard as to carry horses anywhere in the morning of that day. It was an immense funeral, people coming from far and wide to mark the sad event. The long procession, on horse- back and on foot, wended their way slowly up the old road from Daniel McIlvaine's to the cemetery on the hill, and there with great labor the body was laid away. But by this time the sun was so warm that water ran deep in the roads, and it was exceedingly difficult to return. The water ran into and filled the sleigh of Judge Tuttle. He was the man- ager, and his was the only sleigh, the widow and children like others being on horseback. The freshet was so sudden and so great as almost to prevent the return of those from the south part of the town and from Hancock. This part alone made a long procession. When they got down to the Saltmarsh bridge they found it was just swept away. Mak- ing a path with great difficulty down-stream across to the other road, they found the Miller bridge frozen firm, but the water was running two feet deep over the top of it. But the men, by wading across and leading the horses, got the women over, and they all arrived home wet and worn ! As further showing this remarkable day, it is said the horses that drew the 'corpse gave out, and had to be left behind, while for the last mile the bearers and mourners themselves actually dragged the dead man to his grave ! The widow married James Hopkins, Esq., in 1823. The chil- dren were : -
1. DORCAS W., [m. James Jameson, June 18, 1812, and died May 18, 1848.]
2. ROBERT HOPKINS, [b. March 2, 1795, m. Ann Jameson Sept.
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24, 1818, and lived on the place where his father died. He was killed by a fall Dec. 2, 1843. Left five children : -
Thomas J., (b. March 17, 1820, m. Annis Barnes. Lived in Antrim, afterwards in Stoddard. Was a helpless sufferer several years, moved to Hillsborough Bridge, and died there.)
Calvin H., (b. Dec. 22, 1822; m. Ruth A. Kennea of Read- ing, Mass., and died in that place, Feb. 13, 1860.)
Charlotte M., (b. Sept. 28, 1823, unm. ; d. at the Bridge, May 19, 1879.)
Abbie S., (d. Aug. 28, 1849, aged 18.)
Gilman H., (b. April 8, 1836, m. Susan M. Preston of this town, is a carpenter by trade, now lives on the Zenas Tem- ple farm, and has one child, Fred. J., b. Jan. 28, 1868.)]
3. SOLOMON, [b. 1800, m. Clarissa Bell of Bennington, Feb. 2, 1831, now lives in Keeseville, N. Y. Business was that of tanner. A most excellent and devoted man.]
4. JOHN, [b. Oct. 10, 1802; m. 1st, Marcia Ellsworth of Wills- borough, N. Y., in 1835 ; 2d, Mary Ann White of Peru, N. Y., 1842, in which last place he lived many years, and had several children. He came back to Antrim to spend his last years, and d. May 1, 1875.]
5. LUTHER, Tb: 1804, m. Sarah Cook, went West, and d. in Flint, Mich., in 1868.]
6. CALVIN, [b. 1806, d. in childhood.]
CLEMENT.
STEPHEN G. CLEMENT, son of Jesse and Eliza (Glidden) Clem- ent of Unity, was born in Lowell, Mass, in 1833. His father died in 1858, and in 1865 he moved to Windsor with his widowed mother and sister Nellie. The last died here Sept. 30, 1870, at the age of nineteen. She had rare accomplishments of mind and heart. Mr. Clement married Susan M. Butler, who lived but a short time. He moved to North Branch in 1868, and bought the Fox place. In 1869 he married Josephine E. Averill of Mont Vernon, and they moved to that town, much to our regret, in the fall of 1877. They have one child : -
1. GERTRUDE, [b. November, 1872.]
JONATHAN D. CLEMENT, known as " Dow " Clement, was son of Jonathan D. and Lucretia (Merrill) Clement of Deering, and grandson of Carleton and Kesiah (Dow) Clement, also of Deering. He married Vienna P. Dickey of that town. Moved here onto the John Shedd farm in 1870. Mr. Clement was out in the late war in the service of his coun- try, and had some thrilling and terrible experiences. He was detailed to
.
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run a locomotive from New Orleans eighty miles, into Texas, and back, daily. At one time, to accommodate another engineer who wished to bury his dead child, he took a second train and stayed over night in Texas. That very night the rebels broke the connection and tore up the track. Clem- ent and his associates were captured. They had lost several engines by " burning them too hard," and accused him of being the "d-d Yankee " who had spoiled the engines, and ordered him to be hanged to the nearest tree. While preparations were being made, he asked permission to say a few words. He was answered that he "might say a VERY few words, - couldn't stop to hear much." He then told the facts in the case, assured them he had never destroyed the engines, but was specially sent there to preserve them. His statement seemed so reasonable, that they granted a reprieve, and ordered him off, under guard, fifty or sixty miles to have his case investigated. He was ultimately acquitted of the charge, but detained as a prisoner of war for a long time. Was at last exchanged, and after various services and perils reached home in safety. His chil- dren are : -
1. FRANK O., [b. in Cambridge, Mass., May 5, 1854, m. Alma F., daughter of the late Dea. Shattuck, April 22, 1876. Was in business awhile in Manchester, now resides in South Vil- lage.]
2. MARY A., [b. in Weare, Jan. 13, 1869.]
3. JONATHAN D., [b. in Weare, Aug. 22, 1870.]
4. CHARLOTTE M., [b. in Antrim, Sept. 27, 1872.]
5. WILLIAM D., [b. in Antrim, July 4, 1874.]
FRANK CLEMENT, son of Jonathan and Betsey (Aiken) Clement of Warren, was born in that place in 1854, married Emily B. Walch of Merrimack in 1875, and came to Clinton Village, this town, in the spring of 1876. After a residence of three years, they moved to Hollis.
COCHLAN.
MICHAEL COCHLAN lived in the east part of the town many years. He married a daughter of the first settler, Philip Raleigh. Coch- lan had a long dispute about maintaining his father-in-law. Year after year by public vote the town "freed him of Reats " on account of his supporting the old gentleman. And even after Philip's death, the town " Voted (March 12, 1793), to free mr Cochlan of his poll tax in future."
COCHRAN.
JOHN COCHRAN, a Scotch patriot and sturdy Protestant, son of John and Elizabeth (Arwin) Cochran of Londonderry, Ireland, was born in that city in 1704. His father seems to have shared in the memorable defense of the city against the Catholics in 1689. It is supposed that this John and his son, only fifteen years old, were the two John Cochrans that signed in 1718 the memorial to Gov. Shute for land in " New Eng-
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land that excellent and renowned plantation." But this is by no means certain, because there was another John Cochran, probably cousin of the son above, and somewhat older, who was one of the elders at the forma- tion of the original church in Londonderry, N. H. This one, known as " DEACON John," may have been one of those that signed the memorial. For some reason, the father did not come over; but the son came over, arriving here in the autumn of 1720, and settled in Londonderry (part now Windham), on a beautiful slope, at the base of which the cars of the Manchester and Lawrence Railroad now run. This ground has always been in possession of the family, and is now owned and occupied by William Davidson Cochran, Esq. At that time the forest was almost unbroken; and the family are justly proud of the courage and fortitude of that young man of. eighteen years, and cherish the spot where he first pitched his cabin. His uncle, James McKeen (who married Janet Coch- ran, sister of his father), had previously settled a few miles to the north ; and Peter Cochran, John Cochran, William Cochran, and Andrew Coch- ran, all near of kin, had made their clearings, though remote from the young settler of whom we speak. Neighbors were far and few. His life must have been hard and lonely. But occasional visits at his uncle's seem to have suggested some improvement, for in the course of time he married his cousin Jenny McKeen. They had a long life together, accu- mulated property, and did much for the good of the community. Mr. John Cochran, known as " Capt. John," was captain of the military com- pany of Windham, was a man of integrity, -marked by force of char- acter, and held in general respect. He died at the age of eighty-four, and his ashes lie in the old cemetery on the hill, in Windham. He left chil- dren : John, Isaac, James, Elizabeth, and Mary.
John, the oldest, married Annis Dinsmore and went to Belfast, Me.
Isaac, the second child, will be noticed below.
James, the third child, was born in 1748, married Elizabeth Nesmith (sister of Dea. Jonathan Nesmith, daughter of James and Elizabeth [McKeen] Nesmith, and granddaughter of James and Janet [Cochran] McKeen), lived on the old homestead, was a leader in town affairs, and died in 1822. His grandson, William D. Cochran, Esq., inherits the homestead. Another grandson, Isaac P. Cochran, Esq., married Martha J. Nesmith of Antrim, and lives in Windham. The last surviving child of James Cochran is Dea. Jonathan Cochran, now living very aged in Melrose, Mass .; but numerous descendants appear among the conspicu- ous business men of Boston, Melrose, and other places.
Elizabeth, the fourth child, married William Dinsmore, and was the mother of Samuel Dinsmore, governor of New Hampshire in 1831, 1832, and 1833, and grandmother of Samuel Dinsmore who was governor of New Hampshire in 1849, 1850, and 1851. She was also mother of Dea. Robert Dinsmore, the " Rustic Bard," and her descendants are very numerous and respectable.
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The fifth and youngest child, Mary, married Andrew Park in 1774, and lived and died in Windham ; has a large posterity, among them Hon. John C. Parke, a prominent lawyer in Boston.
It appears that there was a "Mrs. Cochran " in Londonderry who was
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a sort of doctress, but whether the wife of John Cochran, first named above, probably cannot now be determined, though her character and circumstances would seem to favor it. Matthew Patten of Bedford kept a diary from 1754 to 1789, a curious and rich thing, and in it occurs the following entry : "July 26, 1754, sent Benin Linkfield to L. Derry to Fetch my Grindstone and to Mrs. Cochran to get something for Suses toe and Got a Poltice and some salve and brought home the Grindstone." As nothing more is said about " Suses toe," it is concluded that that hum- ble member was in due time healed.
DEA. ISAAC COCHRAN, second child of John Cochran that grew up, was born in Londonderry, now Windham, April 23, 1742. The records speak of Isaac Cochran as "Constable " at the early age of eighteen. He married Ruth Hopkins, Oct. 28, 1765 ; moved into Antrim March 10, 1784, and was moderator of a town meeting Aug. 29 of that year. He had been an officer in the Revolutionary army, saw the surrender of Bur- goyne, Oct. 17, 1777, and followed the flag till the war was over. Coming here he bought of Matthew Templeton the place now belonging to his great-grandson, George A. Cochran, Esq. There was a little barn on it, and the log cabin stood in front, near the site now covered with tool- house and shed. Mr. Cochran built the first two-story house in town, in 1785, which stood till 1864, when it was replaced by the present structure. In 1786 he built the saw and grist mill which was long a place of consid- erable business in that part of the town. The magnificent elms he planted with his own hands the year his new house was finished, 1785. Is said to have brought the first wagon to town in 1815. Dea. Isaac Cochran was a man of strong and constant piety, of unusual Christian grace and knowledge, was chosen one of the elders of the church at its formation, was much in office, was one of the ablest and most trusted of the pioneers of the town, and was a man of warm feelings and genuine ability, which is abundantly proved by writings left behind. And there was in him, as in his nephew, the " Rustic Bard," a vein of poetic genius, which, under more favorable discipline, might have given him a distin- guished name. Two pieces, not as being the best, but the briefest, are here given. The first seems to have been written after he had passed his eightieth year, at the request of one who sought a memento in rhyme.
"Forbear, my friend, nor once pretend To ask from me a song ; My muse is mute, my harp and lute Alas ! - are all unstrung !
" Like morning flowers, my mental powers Do wither and decay ; Though small at best, what I possessed Is flying fast away.
" Nor would I strive these to revive,
Nor urge them to return ;
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My locks are white, and dim my sight; This body seeks the urn.
" This house of clay must soon decay, And moulder in the dust ; This soul must fly to God on high In whom is all my trust.
"Farewell, my friend, my views extend To those bright scenes above, Where pain shall cease and joys increase In rounds of endless love ! "
At one time a friend of the deacon had the Western fever, - went out, got sick of it, and was glad to get back. The deacon goes over the sev- eral steps in humorous rhyme, at some length, and closes thus : - ยท
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"'Whatever place or case we're in, Much ill may be prevented, If we would learn like Paul of old Therewith to be contented.
" Contentment is a noble gift, And happy the receiver; It is the surest antidote Against the Ohio fever.
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