USA > New Hampshire > Hillsborough County > Hillsborough > The history of Hillsborough, New Hampshire, 1735-1921, Volume 2 > Part 17
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IV. CHILDREN.
1. David G., b. October 27, 1806; m. April 27, 1830, Jane, dau. of Josiah and Sally (Dean) Converse, of Amherst. In early life he was a noted hotel keeper in Utica and Rome, N. Y., and Washington, D. C., Richmond, Va., and other places. Later he did an extensive business as druggist in Concord, where he d. July 10, 1879.
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V. CHILDREN.
1. Sarah J., b. in Hooksett, June 25, 1836 ; m. Joseph Harlow, of Plymouth, Mass.
2. Henry W., b. in Hooksett, June 30, 1838, grad. from Dartmouth College, 1857, at Dane Law School Harvard University, 1859 ; enlisted as private, 1st Reg., N. H., three mos. Vols .; commissioned 1st Lieutenant Co. I, April 30, 1861; after 1st Reg. was mustered out he was commissioned Captain in the "Fighting Fifth"; later was Lieut .- Colonel of the 15th, then Colonel of the 33rd U. S. Colored troops ; finally breveted Brig. Gen. U. S. Vols. He remained in the service until 1866, when he settled in Boston, Mass .; was a Republican in politics, and took an active interest in public affairs, serving in the Common Council in 1874; was Representative to the Legislature, 1875, 1876, 1877 and 1879; member of the State Senate, 1880, 1881, and was appointed Judge of the Roxbury Court a few weeks before his death, April 7, 1885. He m. September 16, 1863, Eliza- beth, dau. of Laban and Frances (Lewis) Beecher, of Boston. One s., Fred, b. March 23, 1872.
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HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
3. George C., b. December 30, 1840, in Lowell, Mass .; m. December 31, 1861, Josie, dau. of Joseph and -(Shackford) French, of Concord, where she d. September, 1864; he d. in Con- cord, February 10, 1878.
4. Ethelinda G., b. December 11, 1849, in Concord, where she d. March 5, 1857.
2. Mark W., b. April 7, 1808, in Francestown, and came to H. with his parents in 1813; learned the trade of tanner with his father. He m. November 17, 1831, Sarah, dau. of William and Sally (Priest) Conn, and soon after settled at the Upper Vil- lage, where he carried on the business of a tanner and oper- ated a grist mill. He served the town as Selectman. At his death he left the town a bequest of two thousand dollars in consideration that the Fuller plot at Pine Hill Cemetery be given perpetual care by the town. ( See article on Fuller Public Library.) He d. in H.
v. CHILD.
1. Susan, b. April 24, 1840; d. December 13, 1859.
3. John G., b. April 21, 1810. (See)
4. William F., b. in Francestown, May 10, 1812; d. in H., November 17, 1830.
JOHN G., s. of David and Keziah (Kimball) Fuller, was b. in Francestown, April 21, 1810, and came to H. when 3 years old with his parents. His only educational advantages were derived from the village school. He learned the trade of tanning and currying of his father, with whom he was afterwards associated in business. About 1850 a few calfskins which he had tanned and sold in Boston, were purchased by Mr. Stephen Wescott, a leather dealer of that city. They proved of such excellent quality that Mr. Wescott traced them back to the Fuller tannery, and sent a small number of green skins to Mr. Fuller to tan. The result was satisfactory, and from this small beginning was developed a large business in tanning calfskins, the product becoming known as "Westcott Calf." Mr. Fuller gave constant employment to from fifteen to twenty men. To the business of tanning was added a few years later that of currying. Mr. Fuller was a man of marked executive ability, with a remarkable faculty for reading character and exerting an influence over men for their good. He allowed no obstacle to swerve him from the accomplishment of
1
MARK W. FULLER
223
FULLER-GADDAS-GAGE.
his work. He was active in establishing the Valley Bank, now First National Bank of Hillsborough, and upon its organization he was chosen President, a position he held at the time of his death, which occurred very suddenly while he was on a business trip to Nashua, June 14, 1861. He m. Ann, dau. of Nathaniel and Betsey (Robbins) Jones, Sept. 27, 1814; she d. Aug. 22, 1865.
v. CHILDREN.
1. Abbie A., b. December 4, 1834; m. in 1855, Stephen E. Westcott, of Boston.
VI. CHILDREN.
1. Everett Fuller, b. in Boston, in 1858 ; d. September 11, 1887.
2. Edith, b. in Boston, December 3, 1870.
2. Helen Marr, b. July 9, 1836 ; d. August 8, 1840.
3. Wirt Ximeo, b. January 23, 1850; ed. at Philips Academy, Andover, Mass .; m. February 3, 1870, Addie A., dau. of George E. and Caroline Carter (Grant) Russell, of Boston, Mass., where they res.
VI. CHILDREN.
1. Wirt R., b. January 29, 1871; d. March 17, 1891.
2. Addie May, b. in Roxbury, Mass., April 28, 1874; m. June 6, 1895, Dr. Harry Alderman; res. in East Lexington, Mass.
GADDAS.
THOMAS, s. of William and Mary (Mellen) Gaddas, was b. in Newburyport, Mass., May 4, 1852 ; was educated in Amesbury, Mass .; came to H. in 1882; m. Oct. 17, 1885, Lula B., dau. of Charles A. and Helen M. (Chapman) Blanchard ; was a merchant at Bridge Village; now in Newport.
III. CHILDREN
1. Sumner F., b. March 21, 1889.
2. Eunice M., b. May 27, 1899.
3. Wallace H., b. May 28, 1902.
GAGE.
HIRAM JONES, s. of Samuel and Eliza A. (Jones) Gage, and grandson of Richard and Betsey (Hutchinson) Gage, was b. in Washington, Aug. 30, 1844; m. Jan. 1, 1867, Elmina S., dau. of
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HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
Amos and Zilpah (Sweet) Kidder, of East Washington. Res. in Washington, 1844-1870; Boston, Mass., 1870-1874; E. Washing- ton, 1874-1896 ; since then in H.
III. CHILDREN.
1. Eugene C., b. June 13, 1871; m. January 1, 1895, Kate Gordon, b. February 14, 1871; she d. August 26, 1895, and he m second, Alma, dau. of John W. and Ida E. (Ward) Jackman.
IV. CHILDREN.
1. Marjorie Arline.
2. Carroll Eugene, b. in 1901 ..
GAMMELL.
JOHN, emigrated from Glasgow, Scotland, in 1740, his bro. William accompanying him or coming a little later. John m. Han- nah Page of Salem, Mass .; this couple were the parents of three children, Hannah, John, William.
WILLIAM, s. of John and Hannah (Page) Gammell, b. in Boston, Mass., in 1750, attended school until he was fourteen, being for a part of the time Clerk in Boston Market. In 1764 he rem. to Chelmsford, Mass., where he engaged in farming. Both his older brother and he were ardent patriots, and were present at the Battle of Bunker Hill. William was with the American army at Lake Champlain one winter, suffering severely from cold and hunger. In the spring the soldiers were dis- charged, and ordered to form into small companies, return to their homes in Boston and vicinity by different routes which ran through an almost unbroken wilderness, their sustenance con- sisting of such fish and game as they might capture on their way, with such provision as might be procured from an occasional settler met with in their dreary march. March 4, 1831, he was granted a pension of $40 a year.
He had come to Hillsborough in 1773, having bought one hundred acres of land about one mile northeast of the centre of the town, paying Colonel Hill thirty pounds for the tract. He cleared a portion on "Gammell's Hill," boarding at the nearest house, now known as the "James H. Jones place." Having neither
225
GAMMELL.
team nor plow with which to stir the ground, he dug up the earth as best he could between the rocks and stumps with a pick and sowed winter rye, and then returned to Massachusetts. While in the army he obtained a furlough to come to his new plantation in H. and harvest his grain. He m., in 1777, Thankful Keyes of Chelmsford, Mass., b. in 1753. He came to H. with his wife to live permanently in 1779, and the homestead he literally hewed out of the wilderness in the "days that tried men's souls" has remained in the family ever since.
Mr. Gammell became blind in his old age, so he was unable to go about very much unattended. In this plight a favorite white gander, with almost, if not quite, human intelligence, came to his assistance, and guiding him by a string attached to its neck, the twain would take long walks and visit the neighbors. While Mr. Gammell was making one of his calls, the gander would patiently wait outside the door, and upon his reappearance and taking up the guide string would march proudly homeward, always accom- modating its gait to that of its companion. Mrs. Gammell d. April 28, 1828; he d. April 23, 1835.
III. CHILDREN.
1. John, b. November 12, 1785. When 21 years old, with his few wordly possessions on his back, in company with two young men from Henniker, he walked to Boston to seek employment. He m. May 17, 1810, Rhoda, dau. of Joseph and Bettie Jones (Hadley) Robinson, of Lexington, Mass., and set. in East Lexington; she d. September 11, 1861; he d. October 1, 1866.
IV. CHILDREN.
1. John, Jr., b. January 12, 1812 ; m. Martha Lakin, of Lexington ; rem. to Chicago in 1870; wife d. in 1890.
V. CHILDREN.
1. Frank; 2. Willie; 3. Emily.
2. Eliza, b. August 21, 1813 ; d. January 14, 1848, unm.
3. Franklin, b. May 29, 1815 ; m. 1839, Emily Andrews, of Charles- town, Mass .; d. February 22, 1842.
V. CHILD.
J. Franklin, b. -; lived with his mother in Boston and Jamaica Plain; prominent in Episcopal church.
4. Eben, b. March 7, 1817; m. July 13, 1845, Elmira Wiley, of Charlestown; she d. leaving two children, and he m. sec-
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HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
ond, November 3, 1850, Mary A. Butterfield, Lexington ; eight children by this marriage; he d. November 3, 1890. Children all d. in early life.
5. Margaret, b. November 1, 1818 ; d. November 12, 1850, unm.
6. Jonas, b. October 20, 1820; succeeded to his father's homestead in East Lexington ; was active in public affairs and held the offices of Selectman and member of School Board for many years; d. April 14, 1873, unm.
7. Lucy, b. January 1, 1822 ; d. December 23, 1889, unm.
2. Lydia, b. -; d. about 1852, in Henniker.
3. Betsy, b. in 1787; m. Amos Wood of Henniker, where she res. most of her life, but d. in Deering.
IV. CHILDREN.
1. Norman, b. in 1812; d. April 10, 1836, unm.
2. Almira, b. 1815 ; d. March 7, 1853, unm.
3. Franklin, b. in 1817; d. March 6, 1833, unm.
4. Edmond, b. 1820; m. April 16, 1846, Mary B. Richardson, and set. in Deering. Was murdered in the summer of 1883, while riding from Bridge Village to his home. A neighbor was arrested for the crime, but died before the final trial.
4. William, b. in 1778; m. in 1805, Deborah Wood, of Boston, b. in 1779. Settled on County Road on a farm now occupied by John H. Grinnell.
IV. CHILDREN.
1. Harriet J., b. September 12, 1806; m. Lemuel Morse; res. in H. and Deering.
2. Abigail, b. November 16, 1808; m. William Walker, Woburn, Mass.
3. Almira, b. February 11, 1811.
4. Abiah, b. January 30, 1814.
5. Caroline, b. in 1816; m. Joshua Reynolds; res. in Henniker and H.
v. CHILD.
1. Eliza C., res. in Woburn, Mass.
6. Mathias, b. January 20, 1819; m .; enlisted and d. in the army of the Civil War.
7. William, b. November 20, 1822; m. March 10, 1852, Lydia Beckman, b. October 6, 1828, and succeeded to the home- stead on County Road, until he rem. to near Hull Prairie, O., where he d. May 13, 1894; wid. d. June 29, 1897.
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JOHN GIBSON FULLER
227
GAMMELL.
V. CHILDREN, ALL BORN IN HILLSBOROUGH.
1. Jane, b. November 25, 1853; m. June 1, 1875, J. W. Vanne- man.
2. William, Jr .. b. March 5, 1857.
3. John Israel, b. May 28, 1860; d. May 12, 1895. (Were other children b. in Ohio.)
5. Nancy, b. October 3, 1792; m. March 26, 1837, John Hartwell; d. May 14, 1847. (See John Hartwell.)
6. Rhoda, b. October 3, 1792 (twin) ; m. in November, 1847, John Hart- well; she d. September 30, 1873.
7. Samuel, b. September 3, 1794; m. first, December 27, 1836, Lucy, dau. of David and Mary (Quimby) Colby, of Henniker, b. March 29, 1805; d. October 16, 1839, and he m. second, April 29, 1841, Achsah, dau. of Asa and Mehitable Curtis, of Wind- sor, b. October 11, 1806. He set. on his father's homestead; wife d. December 5, 1872 ; he d. June 6, 1880.
IV. CHILDREN, ONE CHILD BY FIRST MARRIAGE.
1. Edward P., b. October 14, 1839; d. June 26, 1842.
2. Pliny F. (See)
3. Lucy A., b. September 10, 1843.
4. Clinton B., b. August 15, 1845; m. March 11, 1875, Ruth Bur- bank, of Franklin, b. January 27, 1843; res. in Franklin from March 12, 1875, to March, 1878, when they came to H. and have res. at the Centre since. He has served as Deacon of the Congregational Church since 1881.
V. CHILDREN, ADOPTED.
1. Adopted October 2, 1880 : Jennie H. Hastings, b. in Bolton, P. Q., June 19, 1870; m. July 3, 1900, Rev. Charles T. Reckie, of Clinton, Mass.
2. Adopted October 2, 1880 : Mary W., sis. of above, b. Janu- ary 25, 1873 ; m. May 16, 1900, Elberton E. Farrar.
3. Adopted June, 1895 : Welcome G. Burbank, b. in Brome, P. Q., October 21, 1890; educated in Hillsborough, Mount Hermon, Mass., and Business College of Man- chester; he m. June 9, 1915, Alice M. French, of Manchester, where they res.
5. Samuel C., b. October 6, 1848 ; m. June 4, 1874, Melinda B., dau. of Charles and Mahalah (Sweet) Burbank, of Sheldon, Vt. Set. on farm one mile east of Centre Village; was Dea. of the Cong. church for over twenty years; rem. to Henniker in 1901.
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HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
v. CHILDREN.
1. Elwin M., b. January 16, 1876; m. September 14, 1904, Mabel G., dau. of Joseph J. and Mary (Gordon) Hun- tington, of Henniker, b. May 22, 1882 ; settled in Hen- niker, in 1904; ret. to Hillsborough Centre in 1910.
VI. CHILDREN.
1. Alice M., b. July 26, 1905.
2. Lindley H., b. December 20, 1906.
3. Evelyn G., b. November 25, 1908.
4. E. Freda, b. October 21, 1911.
5. Helen A., b. June 2, 1913.
6. Antoinette, b. May 4, 1915.
7. Linda Grace, b. April 12, 1920; d. April 26, 1920.
2. Myron C., b. April 14, 1879 ; d. May 3, 1888.
3. Emily F., b. January 24, 1883.
4. Howard C., b. May 1, 1887 ; res. in Henniker.
5. Alice R., b. November 12, 1890; d. September 12, 1894.
PLINY F., s. of Samuel and Achsah (Curtis) Gammell, b. Feb. 21, 1842 ; m. June 21, 1871, L. Amelia, dau. of I. Stearns and Lydia Davis, of Princeton, Mass., b. Dec. 25, 1848; she d. April 13, 1899.
Mr. Gammell enlisted in Company A., 7th Reg., N. H. Vols. in Civil War, Oct. 25, 1861. He was wounded at Fort Wagner, S. C., July 18, 1863; re-enlisted February 29, 1864; promoted to Corporal, December 17, 1864; discharged and mustered out July 20, 1865, having with one exception, and that but a few days difference, served the longest term of any man in his regiment.
He res. in Lowell, Mass., from Dec. 29, 1865, to June 21, 1871, when he settled in Hillsborough; but rem. to Lowell, in Dec., 1872; ret. to H., in May, 1899, and has since res. at Centre Village. Children : Grace S. and Ledia M .; both d. in childhood.
GARDNER.
CHARLES BENJAMIN, b. in Gloucester, Mass., Mar. 15, 1850, s. of Charles and Eleanor B. Gardner, is a lineal descendant of Thomas Gardner, the Puritan, who was one of a party who came from England in the ships "Charity" and "Fortune", to land at. Cape Ann (Gloucester, Mass.) in 1623, where was founded the:
CORP. PLINY F. GAMMELL
229
GARDNER-GAY.
first permanent settlement in New England. Charles was educated in his native town, graduating from the High School at the age of fifteen, when he became a "printer's devil," which occupation he naively declares he has followed ever since-over fifty years. He m. second, June 29, 1893, Emma Louisa, dau. of Henry and Re- becca L. Simonds, of Hancock, b. June 5, 1860. She was a lineal descendant of Gen. Francis Blood, of Temple, who served as a commissary general on the staff of Gen. George Washington in the Revolutionary army. She d. Jan. 12, 1915.
Mr. Gardner came to H., Feb. 1, 1884, to work as a printer in the office of the Hillsborough Messenger, where he continued for three years, when in company with C. W. Hutchins, who had previously disposed of his interest in the Messenger, he went to Antrim to work in the office of the Antrim Reporter. In 1893, he ret. to H., entered the employ of Mark M. Hadley, at that time proprietor of the Messenger, and he remained in this office until June, 1906, when this veteran of the "art preservative" purchased the Smart printing office, and has since conducted the business under the name of the Gardner Printery. Two children by first marriage. He d. May 21, 1918.
III. CHILD BY SECOND MARRIAGE.
3. Eleanor Rebecca, b. August 30, 1899, who has the double distinc- tion of being descended from one of the most active of the founders of the earliest white settlement in New England and a noted officer in the struggle of the American colonists to wrest this country from the government of Great Britain.
GAY.
The ancestor of this family in New England, if not in America, was John Gay, who came from England and settled in Watertown, Mass., in 1630. He was made a freeman, May 6, 1635, and was subsequently one of the founders of Dedham, Mass. ; was Selectman in 1654, and d. in that town, Mar. 4, 1688. His wife Joanna d. Aug. 14, 1691. They had eleven children : Samuel, Hezekiah, Nathaniel, Joanna, Eliezer, Abiel, Judith, John, Jonathan, Hannah and Elizabeth.
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HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
II. Samuel, eldest s., was b. in Dedham, March 10, 1639; m. Novem- ber 23, 1661, Mary, dau. of Edward Bridge, Roxbury, Mass. He was Selectman in 1698, and d. April 15, 1718. Their sons were : Samuel, Edward, John, Hezekiah and Timothy.
III. John, 3d s. of Samuel and Mary (Bridge) Gay, was b. June 25, 1668, in Dedham, where he res. all of his life. He m. May 24, 1692, 'Mary Fisher, who d. May 18, 1748; he d. June 17, 1758. Their children were: Mary, Mercy, John, Samuel, Margaret, Eliphalet and Ebenezer.
IV. Eliphalet, 3d s. of John and Mary (Fisher) Gay, was b. in Ded- ham, September 24, 1706 ; he m. in Newton, where he lived a few years, Dorothy, dau. of Andrew and Susanna (Capen) Hall. He d. in Dedham. Children : Ephraim, Susanna, Lydia, Mehitable, Ebenezer, Eliphalet and Hepsibah.
V. Ephraim, eldest s. of above couple, was b. in Newton, September 13, 1734; m. in Dedham, September 29, 1758, Lois Fisher, b. in Walpole, Mass. They lived for some time in Attleboro, Mass., where ten of their children were born; in 1780 rem. to New London, N. H., where he d. in March, 1817. Their children were : Eliphalet, William, Fisher, Ephraim, Seth, David, Asa, Stephen, Lois, Lydia and Eunice.
VI. Fisher, 3d s. of Ephraim and Lois (Fisher) Gay, was b. in 1767; m. January 9, 1794, Mehitable, dau. of Benjamin and Hannah Parker) Kimball, b. December 9, 1773. Upon attaining his majority his mother presented him with a "freedom suit", made from a red blanket woven by her own hands and colored with hemlock bark, with buttons cut out of sole leather. With this suit for Sunday wear, his worldly possessions in a bundle on his back, he walked from Springfield, Mass., to Keene, N. H., where he worked a year at the tanner's trade. In 1783 he came to Hillsborough and securing possession of an acre of land near the brook that crosses the road from Bridge Village to the Centre not far from the present Gay homestead, he built him a house, using the upper story for a residence and the lower floor for a shop where he made shoes for the Boston market. In a few years his brother David assisted him, and with tanning leather and making shoes they did a thriving business for four years, when David sold his interest to Fisher and went to Maine. About forty young men served apprenticeships of longer or shorter duration with him. One of these, Samuel Kimball, not only learned the trade, but built the upper (Reed's) tannery at Lower Village, afterwards owned and occupied by David Fuller. Mr. Gay was for many years Deacon of the Baptist Church of Hillsborough. He d. September 11, 1853; wid. d. May 30, 1862.
23I
GAY.
VII. CHILDREN.
1. Mehitable, b. June 24, 1797; m. James Ayre of Bradford; she d. in 1873.
2. Betsy P., b. July 13, 1802; m. Timothy Hartsborn of Amherst, b. May 29, 1793. She d. January 15, 1849, and he m. second, Mary H. Jackson of Manchester ; he d. October 25, 1868.
VIII. CHILDREN.
1. Benjamin G. Hartshorn, b. in 1825 ; m. Ann Mitchell, Manches- ter ; d. in Cal.
2. Hannah J., b. in 1828; d. January 4, 1869, unm.
3. Edward B., b. -; m. August 23, 1862, Anna E. Baltzly, of New Philadelphia, N. Y .; d. in Manchester, September 8, 186/6.
4. Juliette ; m. May 2, 1855, Thomas R. Clement, of Mont Vernon.
5. Viola John Hartshorn, A. B., Dartmouth College, 1860, was a clergyman in Lawrence, Mass.
6. Elizabeth, b. in 1837; d. in Amherst, in 1863.
7. Timothy Newton, b. February 26, 1842.
3. Gardner B., b. in 1803; m. Lucy Colby of Bradford; res. in New Jersey.
4. Benjamin H., b. June 24, 1807. (See)
5. Henry Newton, b. in 1814; m. in September, 1841, a dau. of Elijab. and Aris (Bixby) Monroe, b. August 13, 1820. They had three daughters. He d. in October, 1892; wid. d. in 1909.
6. Langdon F., b. in 1819; m .; wife d. April 18, 1900; he d. Decem- ber 14, 1900.
BENJAMIN HOLTON, s. of Fisher and Mehitable (Kimball) Gay, was b. in H., June 24, 1807. He was a tanner, and for many years carried on the trade he had learned from his father. He finally gave up this occupation and settled on the farm which is still in possession of the family, and now known as "Maplewood Farm." It is situated about two and one-half miles from Hills- borough Bridge, near what is known as the "Centre," and now embraces about one hundred and sixty acres of land, although a considerable amount of outlying pasture and woodland is owned in connection with it. He m. Sept. 23, 1834, Ann Duncan, dau. of William and Margaret (Duncan) Stowe, b. Dec. 12, 1811. He d. Jan. 9, 1880, aged seventy-three ; wid. d. Feb. 27, 1896.
VIII. CHILDREN.
1. William E., b. July 18, 1835. (See)
2. Charles C., b. January 21, 1837; d. July 3, 1860.
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HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
3. Robert Duncan, b. October 23, 1838; educated in the schools of the town and Henniker Academy; in 1859, with only ten dollars in his pockets, he went to Boston to seek his fortune. He was employed in a woolen store for nearly three years, when he became a member of the firm of W. B. Ellis & Co., but in 1869, rem. to Manchester and engaged in the provision business for sometime, and then ret. to Boston, where he remained until 1875, when he ret. to Manchester and built up a good business as dealer in upholstery, drapery, paperhangings, curtains, etc. Mr. Gay was a member of Lafayette Lodge of Masons, Pilgrim Fathers, and Amoskeag Grange, P. of H. In the last-named order he was an enthusiastic worker for many years. He was Master and Lecturer of Amoskeag Grange, and a member of the executive committee of the State Grange. He m. Decem- ber 18, 1862, Julia F. Blanchard, of Washington. Mr. Gay d. at the old home in H .; his last illness, the result of a fall, received while attending a meeting of the Pomona Grange at Hudson.
4. Margaret Ann, b. October 2, 1843; d. July 11, 1858.
5. Ellen Maria, b. October 25, 1846; d. September 18, 1853.
WILLIAM EDWIN, eldest s. of Benjamin H. and Ann D. (Stow) Gay, was b. July 18, 1835, and excepting two years as clerk in Boston, he res. all of his life on the farm where he was born. Mr. Gay devoted his life to the cultivation and improve- ment of his farm, following the most approved methods in dairy- ing and fruit culture, as the leading specialties. He kept about thirty cows, mostly Jerseys, and produced as high as four thousand pounds of butter a year, which commanded the highest market price on account of its superior quality. When he was able to dispose of his milk to customers in town he abandoned butter making and shifted his Jersey cows for those of the Ayr- shire breed. Perhaps his greatest satisfaction was in fruit cul- ture, and he raised in abundance many varieties of apples, pears, plums, peaches, apricots and grapes, having as many as thirty varieties of the last-named. He not only took pains in raising fruit, but he exercised the best care and greatest good judgment in harvesting, sorting and marketing his products, winning a reputation in this respect which brought him the highest prices in the market. If meeting with great success in his dairying and fruit culture, Mr. Gay did not neglect his other lines of farming, and his acres of growing corn and potatoes were the admiration
WILLIAM EDWARD GAY
233
GAY.
of his townsmen, while it was not unusual for him to harvest seventy-five tons of hay in a single season, while his neat stock numbered often seventy-five heads.
With its attractive surroundings Maplewood became a popular resort for summer boarders, and so numerous did these become that in 1892 a separate house, with rooms for the accom- modation of thirty or more people was built near the farm house.
While interested in public affairs, Mr. Gay never sought an office, though he was three years a member of the board of Select- men. He was a charter member of Valley Grange, P. of H., of Hillsborough, being a valued worker, giving his best efforts to the upbuilding of the order. It has been said of him: "He was a man of strong moral convictions, careful, methodical, unusually ener- getic and a model farmer. Perhaps no man in the entire history of the town did more for agriculture than he."
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