USA > New Hampshire > Strafford County > Durham > History of the town of Durham, New Hampshire (Oyster River Plantation) with genealogical notes, Volume 2 > Part 9
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SARAH F. b. 3 March 1803; m. 15 June 1825, George McDuffee. d. 5 July 1870.
FRANKLIN b. 7 Dec. 1804; m. 18 April 1827, Emily, dau. of Jeremiah and Caroline Gilmore; d. 8 April 1868.
SETH F. b. 27 Aug. 1806; m. Charlotte Heal of Orono, Me., d. 9 March 1865. Ch. James H., b. 23 Aug. 1843, d. Feb. 1865; Anna F. b. 16 Jan. 1846, m. White; Charlotte M. b. 15 Jan. 1849, d. 8 March 1849; Frank N. b. 28 June 1852, d. Sept. 1877; Charlotte C. b. 23 Jan. 1856, m. George H. Woodbury.
JOHN b. 10 Nov. 1808; m. (1) 12 Nov. 1835, Rhoda Morrill, who was b. 29 Jan. 1810 and d. II April 1843, (2) 5 Dec.
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HISTORY OF DURHAM
1843, Rhoda F. Maxfield, who was b. 23 May 1820 and d. 9. Jan. 1901. He d. 10 Sept. 1876. Ch., Sarah M. b. 21 Nov. 1836; Rhoda M. b. 7 April 1843, d. 29 May 1859; Nathaniel B. b. 20 July 1845, d. 6 April 1846; Nathaniel F. b. II June 1847, m. 23 Dec. 1878, Lydia M. Bellows, who was b. 18 May 1849 and had ch., Harvey M. and Grace L .; Janey b. 19 April 1854, d. 13 Sept. 1854; Olin Sylvester b. 19 July 1862, m. (1) 2 July 1890, Ada C. Rogers, who was b. 15 April 1871 and d. 13 Oct. 1890, (2) 19 July 1905, Bessie Blanche, dau. of Rev. John W. and Mary Scribner of Hartwell, Ind .; Adelia Abigail b. 10. March 1865, d. 28 Nov. 1865.
ELEAZER b. 5 Oct. 1810; d. 12 April 1886.
GEORGE b. 19 July 1812 ; d. 6 March 1813.
Children by second marriage,
MARY STEVENS b. 29 Oct. 1816; d. 6 April 1843.
GEORGE b. 15 Aug. 1817; d. 4 Sept. 1817.
HANNAH L. b. 24 Nov. 1818; m. Jan. 1839, Jeremiah B. Thing of Gilford; d. 5 Sept. 1858.
RHODA OSGOOD b. 27 April 1820; d. Aug. 1822.
RHODA OSGOOD b. 26 March 1823; m. 21 Sept. 1842, William B. Weeks; d. 22 Dec. 1908.
CHARLES G. b. 8 Jan. 1825; m. Esther Sargent of Bristol; d. 8 Jan. 1890.
22. James Davis (Samuel6, Thomas5, Samuel4, James3, John2, James1), born in Madbury 24 Feb. 1793, died on the old Davis homestead in that town 25 Aug. 1850. He was called captain- He married, 23 July 1822, Lydia Palmer, who was born 21 Feb. 1799 and died 18 Oct. 1897. Children born in Madbury :
MARY b. 3 April 1824; d. 24 April 1824.
CAROLINE b. 8 Aug. 1825; d. 17 June 1884. Unm.
JAMES H. b. 25 Jan. 1828; m. 16 May 1850, Margaret Bick- ford; d. 17 Nov. 1899.
FRANK b. Dec. 1830; m. (1) Mary Frances, dau. of Samuel and Alice (Hart) Tuttle of Dover, (2) Henrietta White of Sandwich ; d. 28 July 1864.
ELLEN b. 9 Feb. 1832; m. Adolphus Jenkins of Portland, Ore. LOUISA b. 21 July 1834; m. Charles A. C. Thompson of Durham; d. 31 May 1901.
NATHANIEL H. b. 18 Jan. 1837; d. 20 Jan. 1838.
JOHN W. b. Oct. 1838; d. Dec. 1838.
WILLIAM b. 13 April 1840; d. 13 Dec. 1862.
23. Samuel Davis (Samuel6, Thomas5, Samuel+, James3, John2, James1), born in Madbury II Aug. 1799, died II Jan. 1853. He married, I Jan. 1837, Mary Caverno, daughter of
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HISTORY OF DURHAM
Hurd and Sarah (Caverno) Twombly who was born in Madbury 9 Feb. 1815. Children born in Madbury:
MARY E. b. I April 1838; d. 16 June 1842.
SAMUEL CAVERNO b. 15 March 1842; m. 30 Sept. 1868, Frances, dau. of Thomas and Hope (Twombly) Tuttle, who d. at Chelsea, Mass., 20 Nov. 1887. Ch., the first two b. in Madbury, the third in Chelsea; Gertrude M. b. 20 May 1871, m. 29 June 1898, Frank S. Crandon of Chelsea; Edith L. b. 23 May 1878, d. 9 Jan. 1888; Samuel F. b. 6 July 1881, m. 14 Aug. 1906, Lucie Jackson Childs. JUDITH b. 15 March 1842; m. 16 June 1862, Charles D. Bick- ford; d. 18 Nov. 1906.
MARIANNA b. 28 April 1847; m. 16 Sept. 1864, Charles R. Cocking, who d. in Madbury II March 1902.
JAMES J. b. 4 Jan. 1851 ; d. 20 March 1851.
WILLIAM LEAVITT b. 24 Sept. 1852 ; m. 25 Dec. 1878, Alice H., dau. of John H. and Hannah Wilkinson of Chelsea, Mass., where he became very successful in real estate business. Ch., b. in Chelsea, Marian L. b. 6 Dec. 1879; William R. b. 22 Dec. 1881, m. 6 Sept. 1905, Ethel F. Binney; Nathalie b. 2 Nov. 1883, m. 7 March 1910, Dr. Edgar Fremont Haines, of the United States Army in the Philip- pine service.
24. Calvin Davis (Moses6, Thomas5, Samuel4, James3, John2, James'), born in Canterbury, 26 Oct. 1794, married, 4 July 1827, Sarah, daughter of Benjamin and Lydia (Tuttle) Lucy of Nottingham, where she was born 5 Sept. 1794. She was a granddaughter of Col. Alexander Lucy, who was a lieutenant in the Revolutionary War. Calvin Davis was for many years engaged in the transportation of supplies between the Pascataqua Bridge at Durham and points inland as far north as Concord. He made his home in Barrington, where he died, 16 June 1846. His wife died at the home of her son, William Henry Davis, at Newmarket, 2 Sept. 1874. Children born in Barrington :
25. WILLIAM HENRY b. 23 April 1828; d. 11 Aug. 1910.
26. CHARLES FRANKLIN b. 21 Dec. 1831.
CALVIN NEWCOMB b. 6 May 1838; d. 11 Oct. 1859 at New- market. Unm.
EIGHTH GENERATION
25. William Henry Davis (Calvin7, Moses6, Thomas5, Samuel4, James3, John2, James1), born in Barrington 23 April 1828, lived in Newmarket and was distributing agent of stoves and tinware.
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HISTORY OF DURHAM
He married (1) 17 Oct. 1853, Lavinia, daughter of Smith and Deborah (Meserve) Chapman, who was born 31 Jan. 1835 and died 26 Oct. 1869, (2) 19 Oct. 1870, Susan Richardson, who was born in Sackville, N. B., 7 Aug. 1842 and died 16 April 1885. He died at Newmarket II Aug. 1910. Children by first mar- riage, all born in Newmarket:
JAMES WILLIAM GILMORE b. 14 July 1854; m. 14 April 1877, Minerva Ann (Stackpole) Abbott, dau. of Ichabod and Maria (Jenks) Stackpole. She was b. 26 April 1851 in Kennebunk, Me. He was accidentally killed in New- market II Oct. 1892. Two ch., Harry A. b. 9 Dec. 1879, m. 14 June 1905, Lillian Harding; and Charles J. b. 7 July 1882.
ALBERT HENRY b. 21 Feb. 1856; d. 13 March 1856.
EDWARD CALVIN b. 9 July 1858; m. 3 Nov. 1883, Catherine Cloak of Cape Breton, N. S. He d. at Newmarket 5 March 1902.
HENRY NEWCOMB b. II Feb. 1862; d. 15 Dec. 1882.
JOANNA AUGUSTA b. 29 June 1869; d. 9 Sept. 1870.
26. Charles Franklin Davis (Calvin7, Moses6, Thomas5, Sam- uel4, James3, John2, James1), born in Barrington 21 Dec. 1831, went to Newmarket in 1849 and engaged in the tin and hard- ware business; was later of the firm of Treadwell and Davis. In 1878 he removed to North Epping, where he died 24 July 1878. He was a member of the school board in Newmarket and rep- resented that town in the legislature two terms. He was a member of the Masonic order, of the Odd Fellows and of the Knights of Pythias. He was also a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. He married, at Newmarket, 22 Jan. 1854, Sarah Abigail, daughter of Lemuel and Lydia Hayes (Twombly) Drew, who was born in Durham 4 Dec. 1834. After his decease his family removed to Dover, where his widow married, 28 Feb. 1891, Joseph Woodbury Cate, who died at Dover, 19 Dec. 1905. Children all born in Newmarket:
ISABEL b. 5 Oct. 1854; d. 10 March 1857.
CHARLES FRANKLIN b. 3 May 1857: m. at North Epping, 7 Sept. 1878, Jennie D., dau. of Samuel Furber of New- market. She was b. 22 Feb. 1859 and d. at Lynn, Mass., 18 March 1900.
HERBERT GARDINER b. 18 May 1859; m. at Dover, 24 March 1894, Harriet Estelle, dau. of Joseph Woodbury and Harriet (Kimball) Cate.
SON b. Sept. 1860; d. 4 Nov. 1860. This son, unnamed, was brother of Isabel, Charles F. and Herbert G.
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HISTORY OF DURHAM
NESTOR WILBUR b. 15 Feb. 1869; went to Boston in 1890, where he became private and corporation secretary. He m. at Hyde Park, Mass., 12 Feb. 1903, Alice Louise, dau. of Thomas and Helen (Hovey) Chamberlain of Hyde Park. Res. Winchester, Mass.
DAVIS
David Davis was apprenticed to John Lang of Portsmouth by an order of court in 1678, and by Lang was assigned to Stephen Jones of Oyster River for instruction in the trade of cooper. He made a deposition 6 Aug. 1685, aged then about 26 years. He was taxed in 1681 and 1683. He built the garrison house at Lubberland, in 1695, afterward known as the Smith garrison. Two soldiers were stationed at "David Davis's Garrison," 6 Jan. 1696. He was killed in this vicinity by Indians, 27 Aug. 1696. His widow, Susanna, married James Durgin. The following children are known:
2. DAVID b. abt. 1690; m Elizabeth Thomas.
ABIGAIL mentioned in will of Thomas Morris. ELIZABETH bapt. 20 Dec. 1719, "sister of David."
2. David Davis (David), born about 1690, married 28 June 1717, Elizabeth, daughter of James and Mary (Smith) Thomas, "sitting sick on her bed," as the Rev. Hugh Adams records. He settled at Packer's Falls and built the garrison which has since borne his name, and in which five generations of the name David Davis have lived. His wife was baptized 5 May 1719.
HANNAH bapt. 5 May 1719. LYDIA bapt. 6 Aug. 1721.
ELIZABETH bapt. 17 March 1720; m. (I) Ebenezer Crommett, (2) Joseph Drew.
JAMES bapt. 5 Feb. 1729. He was of Lee in 1770; m. Eliza- beth Durgin, I Feb. 1753 (?).
3. DAVID bapt. 5 Feb. 1729; m. Elizabeth Crommett.
3. David Davis (David2, David1) was born about 1725. He married Elizabeth, daughter of Joshua and Elizabeth (Ken- niston) Crommett, who was baptized I Jan. 1730. He probably died 7 May 1799. Children born in the garrison:
MARY b. 19 Feb. 1750; m. 13 Sept. 1767, Wentworth Ches- well of Newmarket.
MARTHA m. Jonathan Stevens, Jr. of Lee.
4. DAVID b. 25 Aug. 1760; m. Hannah Gerrish.
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HISTORY OF DURIIAM
4. David Davis (David3, David2, David1), born 25 Aug. 1760, married, 4 Jan. 1792, Hannah Gerrish, who was born II Aug. 1770. Revolutionary soldier. [See page 150 of Vol. I.]. He died 19 Nov. 1835. She died in 1866.
JOSEPH b. 9 April 1793
TIMOTHY GERRISH b. 5 June 1795; d. 18 April 1825.
5. DAVID b. II Feb. 1799; m. Mrs. Eunice (Meserve) Demeritt. CHARLES C. b. 29 June 1804.
ALONZO T. b. 10 May 1807. JEREMIAH SMITH b. 3 May 1810.
GEORGE OSBORNE b. 27 April 1814; m. - Gerrish.
5. David Davis (David+, David3, David2, David1), born II Feb. 1799, married 8 Feb. 1826, Eunice, widow of Isaac Demeritt and daughter of Col. Vincent and Hannah (Crommett) Meserve, who was born 12 Aug. 1805 and died 16 July 1880. He died 25. April 1882. In the war of 1812 he served in Capt. William Wiggin's Company, twenty-fifth Regiment of New Hampshire Militia, stationed at Portsmouth.
TIMOTHY GERRISH b. 3 Dec. 1827; m. Mary Bartlett; d. 6 May 1893.
6. EBEN MESERVE b. 2 Dec. 1831; m. Martha Bryant.
7. GEORGE WASHINGTON b. 29 June 1833; m. Hannah Harvey. EMELINE FRANCES b. 21 March 1841; m. Jacob Langmaid; d. 22 April 1879.
6. Eben Meserve Davis (David5, David4, David,3 David2, David1), born 2 Dec. 1831, married (1) Martha Bryant of Lowell, Mass., who was born in 1832 and died 10 May 1854, (2) Frances Ann Gove of East Boston, who was born in Camden, Me., 7 March 1837 and died 17 May 1901. Children born in Durham:
EDWARD EVERETT b. 16 April 1854; m. 1873, Sarah Frances, dau. of Charles De Courcey and Mary Jane (Moulton) Marston of Newmarket.
MARTHA FRANCES b. 25 Aug. 1857; m. John Fremont, son of Timothy and Abigail (Otis) Davis of Lee.
DAVID EBEN b. 12 March 1859; m. 1880, Odella P., dau. of William and Frances (Emerson) Jones.
JUSTINA MAY b. 19 May 1862; m. 5 Nov. 1882, Abbott Lawrence of Epsom.
CHARLES LINCOLN b. 22 Aug. 1864; d. 15 Jan. 1885.
7. George Washington Davis (David5, David4, David3, David2, David1), born 29 June 1833, married Hannah, daughter of Nathan and Eunice (Meserve) Harvey of Newmarket, who
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HISTORY OF DURHAM
was born 7 Nov. 1841. He was overseer of mills in several cities of New England. He died 15 March 1901. .
WILFRED E. b. 29 March 1861 ; d. 28 Oct. 1875.
ALLIE B. b. 6 April 1863. LEWIS E. b. 22 May 1865.
GUY E. b. 15 Aug. 1867.
ARTHUR L. b. I July 1870.
BERTHA G. b. 4 Oct. 1872.
DAVIS
Lieut. David Davis, born about 1730 and called in deeds "David Davis third," was probably grandson of the first David Davis, who may have had an unrecorded son. He purchased the farm at Lee Hook, now known as the "Pine Row," where he settled as early as 1750. He was a lieutenant in the Revolu- tionary War. He married Anna Stevens said to have been born in Durham about 1730, baptized 13 Oct. 1754. They had chil- dren born in Lee:
MOLLY bapt. 13 Oct. 1754; m. - Hill.
JEREMIAH bapt. 23 July 1758.
JOHN, m. Betsey Marsh of Greenland and rem. to Middleton. ANN m. Frost.
SARAH b. 3 Sept. 1763; m. Thomas Bennett.
COMFORT b. 20 Feb. 1767; m. Joseph Durrell.
HANNAH b. 1770; m. John Chapman.
DAVID b. 16 Abril 1772; m. Rhoda Chapman.
David Davis (David) married Rhoda, daughter of Samuel and Mary (Barber) Chapman of Newmarket, who was born 30 Oct. 1770. Children were:
DAVID m. Mary, dau. of Thomas York of Lee; d. about 1889. Ch., Wesley E. of Topsfield, Mass., and Frank, who d. at Topsfield, aged about 25, unm.
NATHANIEL GOODRICH m. 10 June 1836, Elizabeth, dau. of Thomas and Betsey (Chesley) Jones, who was b. 20 Feb. 1812. L. in Lee.
Children of Nathaniel G. and Elizabeth (Jones) Davis:
MARY ANN d. unm. in Lee.
RHODA J. b. 1841; 1. in Lee.
SUSAN E. b. 1844; m. 1876, Josiah D. Thompson of Exeter. THOMAS Jones b. 22 Oct. 1849; m. (1) July 1879, Juliet, adopted dau. of Edwin and Abbie (Littlefield) Bennett of Newmarket, (2) Jan. 1889, Hattie, dau. of Rev. C. B. Mills of Maysville, Mich. He is in the practice of law at Duluth, Minn.
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HISTORY OF DURHAM
Thomas Jones Davis has presented to New Hampshire College a tract of eight acres in Lee and Durham, called Davis Park, which he planted to sweet chestnut trees. The park is to be further beautified by the college, with the hope that the students of the same and the pupils in the two nearest public schools may annually have an October outing party in the park, "to the end that out of the day-dreams of these youths and children perhaps once in a generation one shall materialize in the form of a bigger, better, more lasting and far-reaching effort to increase the sum of the world's happiness." The park is a memorial of his parents.
DAVIS
John Davis, born, probably in Durham, 10 June 1768, married, 15 June 1788, Hannah Hall, who was born I April 1765. L. in Nottingham. Their children were:
2. JACOB b. 12 May 1792; d. 10 Jan. 1839; m. 7 March 1816, Anna Davis, who was b. 18 Oct. 1796 and d. 28 Sept. 1854.
3. SOLOMON HALL b. 20 April 1794; m. Hannah (?) Hall. MOSES b. Sept. 1806; m. Nancy Tuttle.
2. Children of Jacob and Anna (Davis) Davis:
JOHN b. 4 Dec. 1817; d. 27 Jan. 1818. Unm. SARAH ANN b. 27 Jan. 1819; d. I May 1880.
HANNAH b. 2 March 1821; d. 9 Aug. 1822.
ABIGAIL JANE b. 15 March 1823; m. George P. Dearborn. No ch.
MARY ELIZABETH b. 4 March 1825; m. her cousin, George W. Davis.
4. LEVI b. 2 Jan. 1827; d. 26 April 1893; m. (1) Henrietta Lucy of Nottingham, (2) 7 Dec. 1865, Lucy A. Bassett, b. 19 Dec. 1837.
HARRIET b. 30 Oct. 1828; m. Charles Batchelder. 9 ch.
REV. JACOB BURNHAM b. 6 Oct. 1830; m. and had 2 ch.
DAVID FRANKLIN b. 25 Nov. 1832; Darmouth graduate; d. in Texas. 4 ch.
OLIVE DEARBORN b. 29 May 1835; m. William Henry Davis, her cousin.
LAURENDA P. b. 3 Dec. 1837 ; d. 19 April 1869; m. Rufus Law- rence. 2 ch.
3. Children of Solomon Hall and Hannah (Hall) Davis: HANNAH m. Col. Joseph Bachelder. 3 ch.
CAROLINE m. (1) Samuel Leighton, (2) Josiah Garland.
5. GEORGE W. b. 2 March 1822; d. 14 Feb. 1910; m. Mary E. Davis.
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HISTORY OF DURHAM
MARY ANN m. (I) Leighton, (2) Gerrish, (3) -- Davis.
ABIGAIL m. as second wife, Col. Joseph Bachelder.
WILLIAM m. (1) Sarah Bachelder, (2) Addie Dearborn, (3) Olive Davis. 4 ch. by first marriage and 4 by second.
4. Children of Levi and Henrietta (Lucy) Davis:
FRANK J. and ANNIE L. b. I Jan. 1855.
ANSON B. b. I Jan. 1857; d. 27 July 1888.
Children by second marriage:
DAVID W. b. 4 July 1867; m. Bertha Gilchrist.
ALBERT H. b. 5 April 1871; m. Addie Jones.
LAURA N. b. II Nov. 1873; d. at age of 2 yrs. 8 mos.
5. Children of George WV. and Mary E. (Davis) Davis:
ETTA BELLE b. 1858, d. at age of 2 yrs. 6 mos.
FRED E. b. 17 July 1860; m. 10 June 1886, Fannie C. Lucy, dau. of Robert W. and Elizabeth (Thompson) Lucy, who was b. 28 March 1858. Ch., Wesley Elton b. 10 Aug. 1888, graduated at N. H. College, and Wendall Perlton b. 7 March 1890.
ELSIE M. b. 6 March 1862; m. Charles H. Hall. No ch. REV. ABBOTT P. b. 30 June 1864; graduated at Bates College and Cobb Divinity School; m. Julia Steele. 3 ch.
GEORGE S. b. 1867; m. Lena Crowninshield. 3 ch.
DAVIS
Jeremiah Davis had a share in the division of common lands, I734.
Jeremiah Davis of Portsmouth bought land in Durham of Benjamin and Miriam Davis, 27 Aug. 1735, and more land of James Davis 24 Jan. 1737. He married Sarah, daughter of Joseph Jenkins, as shown in the division of Jenkins' estate in 1734. Jan. 21 1744, Jeremiah Davis and wife, Bridget of Durham, deeded land to Ebenezer Davis. He may have been son of Moses or of Joseph. The first book of town records has the births of two children:
JONATHAN b. 25 Aug. 1736.
MOSES b. 20 Dec. 1737; m. Anna Davis.
Moses Davis married Anna, dau. of Nathaniel and Hannah (Davis) Davis, who was born in Madbury, 12 Oct. 1741. They had the following children, according to an old private record:
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HISTORY OF DURHAM
JOHN b. in Lee 15 Jan. 1761.
SARAH b. in Nottingham 15 Jan. 1766.
LoIs b. 20 Oct. 1768.
ELISHA b. 3 Feb. 1770.
HANNAH b. 5 Feb. 1772; m. Robert Oram Randall; d. 6 Jan. 1826.
DEBORAH b. 28 June 1774; m. John Gray, 25 Dec. 1794. ISAIAH b. 5 Feb. 1779.
MARTHA b. 28 July 1781.
John Davis of Lee married, 22 Jan. 1799, Polly Knight of Nottingham and had the following children born in Durham:
STEPHEN b. 24 Oct. 1800; m. 14 Aug. 1821, Clarissa Trickey. DANIEL b. 16 Nov. 1802; m. 30 March 1826, Caroline Teague. She m. (2) Stephen Starbird.
HENRY b. 21 June 1805. Went to East Canada.
MARY H. m. 29 April 1830, Benjamin M. Willey.
Children of Daniel and Caroline (Teague) Davis:
ELIPHALET m. Silver of Haverhill, Mass.
ELLEN MARY m. 27 Sept. 1849, John M. Smart.
HENRY m. his cousin, Sarah Willey; d. April 1862. Ch., Charles H., Martha who m. (1) Fred Day, (2) H. Towle. The widow of Henry Davis m. (2) John Drew, (3) Daniel B. Foss.
ALFRED m. Esther, dau. of Alfred and Harriet (Burnham) Pinkham. Ch., Elmer S., Charlotte who m. Sumner Scott of Glover, Vt., and Gertrude I. who m. George D. Stevens.
ALVAN who was drowned when young.
JAMES b. 20 Jan. 1845; went west and m. 29 Dec. 1869, Martha A. Jones who was b. 19 Feb. 1846. Ch., Alvin Edward b. at Beaver Dam, Wis., 26 April 1871, who m. 6. Sept. 1889, Daisy A. Bondurant at Marinette, Wis. He is a judge there and has two ch., James Bondurant b. 5 Sept. 1900, and Marion Ella b. 27 Dec. 1904; other ch. of James Davis were Ella Clare b. 13 April 1874 and Earl Bryant b. 26 July 1889, who d. 7 Nov. 1892.
Children of Henry and Sarah (Willey) Davis:
CHARLES ALBERT b. 8 Jan. 1858; m. I Jan. 1883, Abbie L. Hurd of Berwick, Me. Ch., Elmer Ellsworth b. 20 Feb. 1885, Albert Joel b. 28 May 1889, Sarah Edna b. 15 Oct. 1891.
MARTHA ANN m. (1) 1874, Fred A. Day. They had dau. Ella E. b. 10 May 1878, who m. 10 Aug. 1899, Sidney E. Taylor and has son, Millard B. Taylor b. 17 Oct. 1900. She m. (2) March 1881, Hiram G. Towle and had ch., Sarah
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HISTORY OF DURHAM
Alice b. 29 Oct. 1882; Charles Henry b. 8 Nov. 1883; Raymond Dudley b. 3 Dec. 1885, who m. 6 May 1905, Retta A. Brown and has Caleb Langdon Towle b. 6 Feb. 1907, Martha Alfretta Towle b. 17 Oct. 1908 and Vivian Charlotte Towle b. I Feb. 1913; Irving William b. 13 Nov. 1887, who m. 28 Sept. 1900, Maud E. Otis; Amy Alberta b. 12 June 1892 and d. 9 April 1910; Everett Louis b. 6 April 1894; Madeline Martha b. 5 June 1898; George Gordon b. 26 June 1902; and Grant Winfield b. 30 June 1910.
The will of John Davis of Lee, 10 March 1788-20 Nov. 1797, names wife, Judith, and children, Moses (who m. 12 Dec. 1784, Margaret Bligh), Clement, Sarah Kenniston, Abigail Hall, Tam- son Stevens and Keziah Furber. This John Davis may have been son of John4, Moses3, John2, James1.
The records of Durham give the family of Clement M. Davis, born in Portsmouth, I Sept. 1795. He married, 12 July 1817, Sarah Davis of Lee, who was born 5 March 1798. Ten children were born in Durham:
GEORGE b. 3 Oct. 1818.
ENOCH S. b. 16 Nov. 1820; m. 20 Oct. 1839, Pauline Staples of Portsmouth.
JOHN M. b. 27 Jan. 1823; m. (1) Miranda Philips, (2) Susan Vannard.
SABRINA JANE b. 8 March 1825; m. Albert Merrill.
MARTHA ANN b. 9 Aug. 1827; d. 31 May 1831. HENRY B. b. 23 June 1829; m. in Australia.
ELEANOR R. K. b. 23 Dec. 1831 ; m. Daniel C. Stilson. CLEMENT b. 19 April 1834; went to Cal.
SARAH b. 5 April 1837; m. Nat D. Tobey.
CHARLES W. b. 5 March 1842; d. at Key West.
David O. Davis of Alton, son of Andrew and Sally (Cate), grandson of Winthrop and Sally (Evans), of page 100, married, I March 1853, Martha Abigail, daughter of Ebenezer and Sally (Stokes) Demeritt, who was born 14 Jan. 1836. He enlisted twice in the Civil War and lost an arm. [See chapter on Military History.] The family now lives in Newmarket. Children were:
ADA AUGUSTA b. 16 Feb. 1855; d. I May 1858.
CLARENCE FREMONT b. 21 Nov. 1856; d. 10 March 1857. AUGUSTA ADA b. 25 March 1858; m. 24 March 1878, Frank A. Sylvester of Durham, son of Dr. William Sylvester. Ch., Adrian P. Sylvester b. I March 1879, Ethel May 8
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HISTORY OF DURHAM
Sylvester b. 2 May 1883, d. 17 Nov. 1884, Marion Merritt Sylvester b. 18 Dec. 1885.
MELVIN b. 24 Feb. 1860; m. 18 Sept. 1882, Cora E. Emerson of Dexter, Me.
ANNABELLE b. 22 June 1863; m. 29 Nov. 1884, Henry E. Hudson of Newmarket.
LUETTE b. 14 Nov. 1866.
GERTRUDE MAY b. 27 Oct. 1868.
HERBERT FRANK b. 24 Aug. 1874; m. 24 June 1900, Sadie E. Kent.
EVERETT GARFIELD b. 23 Nov. 1877.
Charles S. Davis, brother to David O., married Sarah A. Butler who was born 4 July 1831. He, too, was a soldier in the Civil War. He had a son, Walter C. Davis, who married Marcia E. Paul, q.v. They sustained the sad loss of four children from diphtheria.
INEZ MAY b. 9 May 1880; d. 3 Nov. 1889.
WALTER S. b. 23 June 1881; d. II Nov. 1889.
SARAH ELIZABETH b. 20 Nov. 1882; d. II Nov. 1889. GEORGE BUTLER b. 23 April 1886, d. 10 Nov. 1889.
Joshua Davis was living near the Falls in 1719 and had a share in the division of land in 1733/4. He married Esther, daughter of Joseph Bunker. She was born in April, 1693. He bought of Joseph Smith land west of Turtle pond and, 25 April 1735, he conveyed the same to Solomon Sias. One of the bounds was "the fence betwixt my brother Samuel Davis and me." His widow married - Dam. Is this Joshua an unrecorded son of Col. James Davis, whose son, Samuel, was the only person of that name at that time, in Durham? No children of Joshua Davis are recorded, yet it is probable that there were such.
UNCLASSIFIED MARRIAGES
March 31, 1709/20, Zechariah Small and Jane Davis. July 20, 1749, Joseph Pinder and Hepsibeth Davis. Aug. 4, 1754, Benjamin Davis and Abigail Harris. April 17, 1755, Benjamin Davis of Greenland and Margaret Bickford of Durham. Benjamin, son of Widow Margaret Davis bapt. Oct. 29, 1768.
June 9, 1760, Joseph Doe and Margaret Davis.
April 7, 1757, Joseph Davis and Clark, both of Dur- ham.
July 14, 1756, William Horn and Jane Davis, at Dover. April II, 1771, Eleazer Davis of Madbury and Sarah Cook. March 6, 1785, Levi Davis and Olive Noble.
II5
HISTORY OF DURHAM
May 11, 1786, Daniel Davis and Elizabeth Chesley.
Dec. 25, 1796, Reuben Davis of Nottingham and Anne Wormwood of D.
July 28, 1805, James Willey, Jr., and Miss Hannah Davis.
July 4, 1821, Miles Davis and Betsey Randall.
Aug. 20, 1820, Ephraim L. Bickford and Sally Davis.
March 1825, Jonathan Davis and Elizabeth Emerson.
April 18, 1830, Miles Tuttle and Lucinda H. Davis.
DEMERITT, DEMERITT
The Harleian Manuscripts contain the Visitation of Devon- shire, dated 1564, and under the name Knolles of Little Hempston declare that Richard Knolles married Maude, daughter of Bald- win Demeritt, lord of Meryett, and give ten generations of their descendants. Ten generations prior to 1564 take us back to shortly after the Norman conquest of England. The place where some Norman settled, here called Meryett, is now known as Merriott, a parish in the hundred of Crewkerne, western division of Somersetshire, two miles from Crewkerne. It is called repeatedly Meriet in the Domesday Book of William the Con- queror. Nicholas de Meriet and wife, Elizabeth, in 1207, Simon de Meriet and wife, Lucia, in 1262, and Walter de Meriet, in 1256, are named in the State Papers of England. In 1333 another Walter de Meriet was chancellor of the church at St. Peter, Exeter. These names indicate the Norman origin of the family. There can be no doubt that the surname Demeritt is a place name, the first syllable being the French preposition de, which was dropped by some branches of the ancient family, and the surname Marriott, Marret, Meriot, Merritt, etc., was very common in southern England and in New England in the seventeenth century. Capt. Nicholas Merritt was of Salem, Mass., in 1648, called also Nicholas Meriot. Charles Demerit's tax was abated in Boston in 1700, and he is called also Demeret, Demerre and Demerry. John Demeritt, aged 25, gave testimony in Middlesex court in 1657. He came from Barbadoes. Thomas Demeritt of Salem, Mass., master of a ketch, made a deposition, August 1700. It is beyond reasonable doubt that Meriet, or Marriott, in Somersetshire, first gave birth to the De Meritts. Search for a place name in France and the Channel Islands, from which this surname might be derived, has been fruitless. The tradition that Eli Demeritt came from the Isle of Jersey may have some
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