USA > New Hampshire > New Hampshire agriculture : personal and farm sketches > Part 19
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John B. Baker was born April 6, 1834. He obtained a fair education in the district schools and at the famous Pembroke "Gymnasium," and devoted himself to agri- culture on the homestead, where he remained up to 1892. Dairying was the leading specialty on this farm, under his father's management and his own a superior quality of butter being produced and sold to private cus-
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tomers in Concord, the Downing family, for instance, being supplied with table butter from this source for more than sixty years in succession.
Mr. Baker was united in marriage November 14, 1865, with Miss Sarah Jane Locke. They have had two sons, the younger of whom died at the age of thirteen. The elder, Rufus H., born March 16, 1870, is a gradu- ate of Dartmouth of the class of 1893, and has adopted the legal profession. He was married to Miss Grace L. Tuck, August 13, 1896. They have a son, Per- ley Dustin, born May 8, 1897. Mr. Baker is liberal in his religious views, and politically a Republican. Resid- ing in a town which has been strongly Dem- ocratic until quite re- cently, he has natural- ly not been called into public service to any great extent, but has served his town as JOHN B. BAKER. treasurer ; and at the last election, Novem- ber, 1896, was chosen its representative in the legisla- ture, in which body he served efficiently as a member of the committee on revision of the statutes.
Some years ago he became interested in the order of Patrons of Husbandry, and, there being no grange in Bow, he joined that at Hooksett, being a member of the first class initiated in that grange, with which he was connected several years, up to 1894, when he withdrew and united with the new grange which had been estab-
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lished in Bow, in which organization he served as over- seer in 1896. Five years ago, or in 1892, Mr. Baker removed from the homestead, and now has his residence upon a small but productive and well-tilled farm near the northern boundary of the town, and two miles from the centre of business in Concord.
GEORGE B. KIMBALL,
GRAFTON.
The observing traveler by rail from Concord to Leb- anon, on approaching the Grafton station, beholds a fine stretch of meadow to the right, and a spacious set of farm buildings, indica- tive of thrift and pros- perity. Here is the well-known Kimball farm, of which the late Peter Kimball, one of the most prominent agriculturists of his time, was for many years proprietor.
Peter Kimball, a member of the noted Kimball family of Bos- cawen, was born in that town, March 25, GEORGE B. KIMBALL. 1817. He was reared to farm life, but en- gaged for a number of years in mercantile business in different places, and was subsequently for a time on the home farm in Boscawen.
He married, February 20, 1851, Nancy A. Adams of
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Grafton, and two years later established his home on the farm in question, in that town, where he was extensively engaged in stock breeding, actively connected with agri- cultural societies, and a leading exhibitor at fairs, up to
THE KIMBALL HOME, GRAFTON.
the time of his decease, in March, 1881. He left four children, two daughters and two sons. Of the former, the elder, Mary A., is the wife of Dr. E. M. Tucker of Canaan, while Carrie A., the younger, is Mrs. W. E. Swentzel of Kansas City, Missouri. The elder son, Cyrus A., is engaged in the hotel business at Canaan, while the younger, George Ben, remains at home with his mother, and manages the farm, which includes, in all, about 600 acres of land, much of which is in for- est. The mowing and tillage include about ninety acres, much of which is natural meadow, watered by Smith's river, and superior grass land. The annual hay crop amounts to about 100 tons, and there is also a silo of 100 tons capacity. The stock consists of about forty-five head of cattle, including from fifteen to eight- een cows, eight horses, and sixty sheep, with some eight or ten swine. The milk is sold at the station, a mile
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away, for the Boston market. The buildings are excel- lent, including a substantial brick house, and fine sta- ble, and a large stock barn 44 x 100 feet, with cellar under the whole, supplied with hot and cold water, and all modern appliances.
George B. Kimball was born January 28, 1865, and has spent his life on the farm, which he now manages except such time as was passed in securing an education in the common school and at New Hampton Institution. He is known as " a hustler," and carries on extensive operations by contract, aside from his regular farm work, in lumbering, haying, and other lines, cutting the hay for instance, on some two hundred acres of land for other parties the past season. He is a Republican in politics, and represented the town of Grafton in the legis- lature in 1895. He is a member of the New Hampshire Society of the Sons of the Revolution, and of the Knights of Pythias.
WILLARD BILL, JR.,
WESTMORELAND.
Willard Bill, Jr., was born in Westmoreland on the old homestead on which he has always resided, October 14, 1839. He was the only child of Willard and Clarissa (Esty) Bill. The Bill homestead has been occupied by father and son for sixty-two years uninterruptedly. Its extensive area, and its spacious mansion of " ye olden time " are well known, being built in the most thorough manner in 1792, and bearing evidence that timely repairs withstand the ravages of a century. The farm that is more complete in every line is rare, though a few may surpass it in some one specialty. It is a landed estate that invites diversified farming, which has been pursued by both father and son.
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After completing his round of the common schools, Mr. Bill attended the seminary at Westminster, Vt., and Powers Institute at Bernardston, Mass., then under charge of that famed teacher, L. F. Ward, where he ranked well in his classes. For three or more genera- tions the Bills have been noted for superiority as teachers of common schools. Willard, Jr., was in wide demand, being especially noted for "straightening" out the unruly schools, in which work he was very successful. Mr. Bill has been called upon to act in public and official positions many times. though being very far from an office-seeker. He has been selectman seven years, moder- ator ten years, county commissioner three years, and is at pres- WILLARD BILL, JR. ent an active member of the State Board of Agriculture, and of positions of public and private trust he is largely laden.
Mr. Bill is easily first in promoting public enterprise in his native town, and his successes have been and are many. The splendid free town library has been very largely the work of Mr. Bill, having received very little assistance either in the selection of its books, in its management, or in its origination. The town Mutual Fire Insurance association, which for twenty-five years has been a success, was " blocked out " by him, and of which he was secretary for eighteen years, until his
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resignation. In the settlement of estates and in care of them he has always been active, and in this line he has had much to do. " His word is as good as his bond," is a common saying of his townsmen, over which he feels a justifiable pride. Soon after he reached his majority, he was commissioned a justice of the peace, and from that time to the present his services in this direction have been in demand.
Mr. Bill's life has been a noted one for diversity of pursuits and for ability of execution. His counsel is always in demand, his honesty and faithfulness are unquestioned. As a Patron of Husbandry, he has been active and influential, both in the Great Meadow Grange of which he is a member, and also of his Pomona. He has been secretary, master, and chaplain of his grange.
April 12, 1866, he was married to Ellen O. Isham of Gilsum. They have had two children,-Clara F. who married Walter S. Hutchins of Fichburg, Mass., and Jennie. L., both of whom inherit largely the Bill charac- teristic qualifications.
JONATHAN ROWE,
NEWBURY.
There is no more rugged territory to be found in the state than that embraced within the limits of the town of Newbury, and yet, notwithstanding its rocky and uneven surface, it is by no means one of the least productive of the agricultural towns of the state, being specially adapted to grazing and stock growing, while potatoes and all the cereal crops are produced in good quantity and superior quality, as all observing attendants of the Bradford and Newbury fair are very well aware. Newbury has, indeed, contributed its full share toward the splendid stock and produce exhibits at this fair since
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its organization, and since the death of the first presi- dent, the late Col. Mason W. Tappan of Bradford, has furnished a president for the fair association, the present incumbent, Jonathan Rowe, Esq., now serving for the fifth year.
Mr. Rowe is a native of Newbury, being the oldest son of Himan and Eliza (Ring) Rowe and grandson of the late Rev. Jonathan Rowe, whose name he bears, born July 28, 1834. on a farm adjacent to that upon which he now resides, and which is at pres- ent included in the ex- tensive landed estate of Col. John Hay, ad- jacent to his spacious and elegant summer cottage overlooking Sunapee lake. Reared to farm labor, he never- theless secured a good education in the com- mon schools and at the New London acade- my, and, like a large JONATHAN ROWE. proportion of the in- telligent and enter- prising young men of his generation, was engaged in teaching school in winter for a number of years, with much success in adjacent towns. Possessed of musical talent in a marked degree, he pursued his studies in that direction to a considerable extent, and has, during all his life, sung in the choir at church services and on other public occasions.
Mr. Rowe was united in marriage, February 24, 1859. with Louisa M. Stevens, daughter of John and Lois
24
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Stevens of Newbury, and established his residence upon the old Stevens homestead, where his wife was born, and where they have since resided. They have one daughter, Nellie L., and an adopted son, Edward C., died at the age of nine years and five days. The farm was originally a large one, but a portion of it was sold a few years since to Colonel Hay, and it is upon this portion that the summer residence of the latter was
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RESIDENCE OF JONATHAN ROWE, NEWBURY.
erected. Mr. Rowe pursued mixed farming, with stock- raising as a leading feature. Summer boarding has also been engaged in at the farm to a considerable extent in past years, the location adjacent to Sunapee lake, and commanding a fine view of it, being most favorable therefor. It is about two miles from Newbury station, on the New London road, and about the same distance from Blodgett's Landing.
For many years Mr. Rowe was engaged as a produce dealer, buying extensively throughout the surrounding country, and selling in the different markets. In this capacity he carred the first potatoes shipped over the Concord & Claremont road after the opening of the line.
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In politics, Mr. Rowe is a Democrat. He has filled most offices in the gift of his townsmen, including those of school committee, tax collector, and selectman, in the latter capacity several years as chairman of the board. He was road agent two years, chosen under the new highway law, and also represented his town in the legis- lature of 1893-4, taking an active part in the practical work of the session. He is a justice of the peace and quorum throughout the state, and has held a commission for more than forty years.
Mr. Rowe has been a member of St. Peter's lodge of Free Masons at Bradford, for forty years, and was for seven years W. M. and a member of the Chapter of the Tabernacle of Royal Arch Masons of Newport. He is also an active Odd Fellow, having originally joined Sugar River lodge at Newport, but became a charter member of Massassecum lodge at Bradford, for which organization he wrote the by-laws. He has passed the chairs in the lodge, and also served as district deputy. He was also for a time a member and officer of Brad- ford Grange, Patrons of Husbandry.
LUCIEN THOMPSON,
DURHAM.
The Thompson family has ever been conspicuous in the town of Durham, and prominent in the history of the state. The first of the name in New Hampshire was Wil- liam Thompson, who was a resident of Dover as early as 1647. His son, John, established himself in Durham, then known as the Oyster River settlement, where he had received a grant of land in 1694, which embraced a part of the present Thompson estate. He married Sarah, daughter of Capt. John Woodman, proprietor of the famous Woodman garrison. His son, Robert,
LUCIEN THOMPSON.
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located on the present Thompson farm, and built a house upon the same site occupied by the present mansion. Robert Thompson was the father of Ebenezer, familiarly known as "Judge" Thompson, who took a most con- spicuous part in the Revolutionary history of the state, being a member of the "Committee of Safety," one of the party which captured Fort William and Mary at Newcastle, Dec. 14, 1774, a leading member of the pro- vincial congress, and the first secretary of state under the state government, serving in that capacity during the entire war period. Subsequently he was for fifteen years a judge of the Supreme Court and of the Court of Common Pleas for Strafford County. Judge Thompson built the main portion of the present residence on the Thompson farm. His son, Benjamin, succeeded to the estate, and was followed by his son, Ebenezer, a brother of Benjamin, who made the munificent donation to the state for the endowment of the Agricultural college. Ebenezer was in turn succeeded by his son, Ebenezer, whose son, Lucien, is the present proprietor.
Lucien Thompson, son of Ebenezer and Nancy G. (Carr) Thompson, was born on the old homestead, June 3, 1859. When he was ten years of age, his father died, and his mother soon removed temporarily to Manchester, where Lucien was educated in the public schools, graduat- ing from the High school in the class of 1877, of which he was the salutatorian. The following year the family returned to Durham, since which time he has been in charge of the farm and actively engaged in the pursuit of agriculture.
The Thompson farm, which is located about half a mile to the northeast of the railway station in Durham, embraces about two hundred acres of land at the present time, and produces annually fifty tons or more of hay and other fodder. Fruit, milk, poultry, and pork are the
THE THOMPSON HOMESTEAD, DURHAM.
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leading specialties. The buildings are spacious and convenient, the dwelling being a fine old mansion with modern improvements, while the main barn, 84 × 44 feet, with cellar under the whole, is one of the best in the region.
Mr. Thompson has been prominently engaged in pub- lic affairs for several years past, having been a member of the board of supervisors in Durham, in 1884-5, repre- senting the town in the legislature of 1887-8, when he was a member and secretary of the committee on educa- tion, and serving as moderator for the last six years. He was appointed a member of the State Board of Agri- culture in October, 1887, and was reappointed for another term in 1890, but resigned in 1892, when he was appointed a member of the board of trustees of the New Hampshire College of Agriculture and the Mechanic Arts, which latter position he now holds, having been reappointed, and serving also as secretary of the board since June, 1896.
Politically, Mr. Thompson is a Republican, and in reli- gion a Congregationalist, and an active member of the Congregational church in Durham. He is a member of the society of the Sons of the American Revolution, and of Scammell grange, Patrons of Husbandry, of Durham, being a charter member, the first secretary and second master of the latter organization. He held the master's office four years, during which time the grange increased greatly in membership and influence. He was also for two years lecturer of the Eastern New Hampshire Pomona Grange, and two years a member of the execu- tive committee of the State Grange. He has strong liter- ary tastes, with a penchant for historical research, and has written extensively for the press. He has one of the best private libraries in the state, largely bequeathed him by his aunt, the late Miss Mary P. Thompson of
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Durham, for the proper accommodation of which he has added a wing to the family mansion.
April 6, 1887, he was united in marriage with Mary Lizzie, daughter of the late Henry A. and Lizzie (New- ell , Gage of Manchester. They have three children, Robert Gage, born Sept. 17, 1888; Ruth Elizabeth, March 16, 1891, and Helen Pickering, Jan. 13, 1895.
JOSEPH AVERY WHITCHER.
STRAFFORD.
The traveler, journeying from Dover to Concord by the old "Province Road," after passing the far-famed Bow Lake, pursuing his way through the long woods, comes to a series of long, steep hills, fragments of the old " Blue Hills"; the top is soon reached, aud there;
THE WHITCHER HOMESTEAD, STRAFFORD.
sentineled by a sturdy rock-maple tree, planted more than a half-century ago by the hand now resting in the little farm burying-yard, he sees the modest farm home, herewith pictured, the residence of the late Joseph A. Whitcher. A stubborn and rocky soil, under his strong
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hand and quick brain was beaten and molded into a productive, profitable farm, a demonstration that in the middle of the present century farming paid. On this farm, progress was the watchword. The first cast-iron plow used in this region was owned by the Whitchers. They were in the lead in the use of mowing-machine, horse-rake, and other new and improved farm machin- ery.
The Whitchers are descendants of Thomas Whittier,* who sailed from Southampton, England, with John Dob- son, master, in the ship Confidence, landing in Salem, Mass., in April, 1638. Salisbury and Newbury were respectively the dwelling-places of Thomas Whittier until 1650, when he moved to Haverhill, Mass., where he died November 28, 1696, in his seventy-seventh year. Haverhill records show that on May 23d, 1666, he was admitted as a freeman.
Of his ten children we shall notice but two, Joseph and Nathaniel.
The line of descent from Thomas Whittier to the sub- ject of this sketch is :
Thomas, Nathaniel, Reuben, Benjamin, William, William Jr., and Joseph A. The other son, Joseph, is the head of a line ending with the " Quaker poet," John Greenleaf Whittier.
William Whitcher, Jr., and his wife Abigail (Avery) Whitcher lived in Epping, N. H., where their five chil- dren, Naomi, Jonathan E., Susan F., Joseph A., and Caleb F., were born and lived until 1837. The educa- tion afforded by the district school on Red Oak Hill was all that the income from the little grist-mill and the labor of the father at the millwright's trade could afford. Joseph A. tended the mill and studied his arithmetic,
* The names Whittier, Whitcher, and Whicher are used indiscriminately by various branches of the family.
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geography, spelling, and reading as the golden grain was ground into meal from which the coarse but whole- some food of the sturdy New England population of that time, was prepared.
In September, 1836, William Whitcher bought the farm in Strafford of Isaac Swain, and in February, 1837, the family moved there. The buildings were old and the farm impoverished, and without suitable stock and tools. Strong hands and firm determination, together with frugality, soon bettered these condi- tions. In February, 1839, William Whitch- er died in his fifty- sixth year, leaving the boys to battle with debt. The winter eve- nings were made prof- itable by shoemaking, and the autumn saw waving grain and ri- pening corn. In 1844, the buildings were re- paired ; in 1847 more land was bought, and JOSEPH A. WHITCHER. again in 1869 and 1883 still more was added, so that the farm consisted of two hundred and fifty acres in good condition, with mod- ern buildings, stock and tools, and all paid for from the earnings of the farm itself.
In politics most of the Whitchers are Democrats, and Joseph A. was no exception. During the trouble- some days of the war he was one of the selectmen of Strafford, and was active in guarding the rights of his fellow-citizens. Later, when a few men for political rea-
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sons attempted to divide the town, his active opposition did much to thwart their designs. In town-meetings his voice was ever heard on the side of economy, and the taxpayers always found him working in their interest. In 1876 he was chosen to represent the town in the Jegis- lature and was re-elected in 1877, serving both years on important committees. While at Concord he became familiar with the aims of the State Agricultural college, and in 1878 he sent his youngest son to that institution.
In September, 1885, while in the full pos- session of mental and physical powers, he was suddenly stricken with apoplexy, and though living several years, never fully re- covered, but slowly de- clined, passing peace- fully away with his wife and sons around his bedside, July 7, 1891. He was a kind and affectionate husband, a just and thoughtful father, a CHAS. W. WHITCHER AND NEPHEW. true and loyal citizen, his full share of life's work cheer- fully and faithfully done, and the world the better for his having lived.
August 28, 1846, Joseph A. Whitcher married Martha Emerson, a self-reliant woman, who had helped to sup- port her father's large family by money earned as weaver in the Cocheco mills at Dover, to and from which she many times walked. Martha (Emerson) Whitcher wearied not of honorable toil, and at eighty years was
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doing her life's work cheerfully, uncomplainingly, ever anxious for the happiness of others. No truer wife, no better mother ever lived. Five children blessed the union of this couple, two girls, Abbie E., and an infant, both dead, and three sons, Charles W., Joseph E., and George H., all living, and who, with Harold P., son of Joseph E., are all the male representatives of the family of William Whitcher.
Charles W. Whitcher lives on the old farm, and, though an invalid, is active and useful in the community. As a boy, he was an exceptionally good scholar and attended Pittsfield academy with a view to obtaining a college education, but sickness compelled the abandonment of this plan. In politics, he is a Democrat, and has been a member of the board of education many times, and has also taught many terms of school in his native town. For a year he was the clerk of the New Hampshire Experi- ment station at Han- over, under his broth- er, Prof. George H. Whitcher.
Joseph E. Whitcher is now the main de- pendence of the fam- ily, in managing the farm and building up the herd of thorough- bred Ayrshire cattle, now the chief source of income. He re- JOSEPH E. WHITCHER. ceived a good educa- tion at Coe's academy. He is a Democrat, yet he cares little for political matters. He is a member of the
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Grange and an Odd Fellow, with a host of friends and few enemies. He married Abbie D. Perkins of Straf- ford. They have two children, Harold P., whose por- trait is shown with his Uncle Charles, and Alice. Jo- seph E. Whitcher is one of New Hampshire's best farmers.
PROF. GEORGE H. WHITCHER,
youngest son of Joseph A. and Martha Whitcher, was born Nov. 23, 1860, and attended school at Coe's acad- emy in 1876, and Pittsfield academy in 1877. In August, 1878, he entered the Freshman class of the Agricultural college at Hanover, and graduated in 1881, having led his class, taking the Smyth prize for best essay. He re- turned to the farm for a year, and then engaged in the manufacturing business in Massachusetts. In Decem- ber, 1883, he was chosen superintendent of the college farm at Hanover, assuming control in March, 1884. In April, 1885, he was chosen professor of agriculture, be- ing the first to occupy that chair. On Feb. 22, 1888. Professor Whitcher was chosen director of the experi- ment station, the work of organizing and equipping that institution falling largely upon him.
When the question of the removal of the college to Durham was agitated, Professor Whitcher was among the first to advocate the change, and worked persistently both at the college and before the legislature to secure the adoption of a plan that should accomplish the desired result.
The first work of construction at Durham was com- menced Sept. 14, 1891, under Professor Whitcher's per- sonal supervision, and the finest barn in the state was erected, one with modern conveniences and so located that level entrances were had for the basement and three floors. The plans were drawn and the design origi-
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