USA > New Hampshire > Hillsborough County > Lyndeborough > The history of the town of Lyndeborough, New Hampshire,1735-1905 > Part 58
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He must have been very popular, for he was chosen Repre- sentative to the General Court twelve times in succession, from 1805 to 1816, and once again in 1820. He supplied Col. Perley Putnam with much information, and wrote concerning the family in this town :
"There are living in the town of Lyndeborough twenty-six male descendants of Ephraim Putnam, including his son Aaron. Up to the present date (1834) there have been three Deacon Putnams, and six Capt. Putnams in Lyndeborough."*
Daniel Putnam owned a saw-mill, undoubtedly that which now belongs to Mr. E. H. Putnam. He was a carpenter by trade and his assistance and advice were sought in the repair- ing and erecting of public buildings in the town. He was prominent in the Universalist movement and purposed erecting a parsonage for the accommodation of the Universalist minister, Mr. Hussey. The lot on which he set out to build was after- wards sold to his grandsons, Charles and William Richardson, who erected on it the house in which Mrs. Clough of Lynn, Mass., has now a summer home.
Daniel Putnam, Esq., departed this life in December, twelfth day, 1841, aged 71 years .. His wife Hannah passed away in 1872, aged 96 years. For his children, see Genealogies.
* See Putnam Family, part IV, p. 204.
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JOHN PUTNAM, son of Ephraim and Lucy (Spaulding) Putnam, lived with his sister Betsey, on the ground now oc- cupied by the house of Mr. Walter Tarbell. Solomon Cram, who built the blacksmith shop in the village, was their nephew, and took care of them in their last days, and received their estate in reward for his services. John Putnam seems to have owned the land which is now the property of Mr. Joseph A. Johnson, south of the road, as well as Mr. Tarbell's lot. (See p. 505.)
Of the daughter Esther, we have but the record of her birth.
But Sarah Putnam, daughter of Ephraim and Lucy (Spauld- ing) Putnam, married David Cram, Jr., and they removed to the state of Vermont. Solomon, above-named, was their son.
CAPTAIN ISRAEL PUTNAM .- Captain Israel Putnam was the son of Squire Daniel Putnam. (See Genealogies.) He owned and operated the saw-mill which now belongs to Mr. Edwin H. Putnam. He built an addition to it. (See pp. 340 and 522.) He served the town three terms as representa- tive (See p. 258) and was prominent in middle life, in the affairs of the town. He held many important offices, and served many years as surveyor of lumber. He had four sons, William R., Daniel, Israel and Sumner ; and also four daugh- ters, Mary Angeline and Hannah by first wife, and Abby and Letitia by the second. Of his sons, two won more than ordi- nary distinction ; one in the realm of business, and another in literature and pedagogy. Some notices of these follow.
WILLIAM R. PUTNAM .- [The following notice is taken from the Woburn News of Dec. 7, 1901.]
"William R. Putnam, for three score years an honored citizen of Woburn, died at his home on Union Street, Monday afternoon, Dec. 2, aged 80 years. Mr. Putnam was born in Lyndeborough, N. H., in 1821, and was the son of Israel and Ruth Putnam. The public schools of his native town furnished educational advantages of a limited extent, as, early in life he was forced to begin work. When 21 years of age he came to Woburn and secured employment with Mr. Sheffy, then a patent leather manufacturer in Wilmington. Later he was similarly employed in Newark, N. J., which place was headquarters for this branch of industry. After four years in Newark, he was employed two years in Philadelphia, where he was superintendent of a patent leather factory. He came back to Woburn in 1852 and entered the firm of S. O. Pollard & Co., doing business on Easton Avenue. The firm con- ducted a lucrative business for 20 years, when Mr. Putnam severed his connection and retired from active business. Since then he has busied
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HISTORY OF LYNDEBOROUGH
himself with his real estate business. Mr. Putnam was a member of the board of selectmen in 1874-1875, and served on the cemetery committee and as superintendent of the cemetery for several years. He might have filled public office on many occasions if his inclinations had ac- corded with the wishes of his fellow-citizens. He was one of the pioneer organizers of the Co-operative Bank and a member of its first board of directors. Woburn loses, in his death, one of its most upright citizens, a man of quiet, unobtrusive nature, of courtly and kindly manner, and of cleanly life. His widow and one granddaughter, Miss Christine Kelley, survive him. The funeral was held Thursday, Dec. 5, at 2 p. m., from the First church parlor, Rev. Dr. March officiating."
This record is believed to contain no word of undue praise. The Baptist church has several times profited by and rejoiced over his generous benefactions. (See p. 350). He made valuable personal gifts of books to the Lyndeborough public library. (See p. 388.) He invested a very generous sum out of the residue of the Jotham Hildreth estate, of which he was trustee, the interest of which should be used to assist the worthy, unfortunate poor of the town. Such men are truly an honor to their native town.
DANIEL PUTNAM, A.M., LL.D. - " Daniel Putnam was born in Lyndeborough, January 8, 1824. The early years of his life were spent on a farm, in a lumber mill, and in a carpenter's shop. His early education was such as a New England district school gave at that period. After his tenth or twelfth year he attended school only in the winter season. This was the only schooling he received until twenty years of age. During the latter part of this early period he received much advantage from a kind of lyceum, which was organized in many of the school districts of the country. In this society he gained considerable practice in writing, speaking, and de- bating, and cultivated a love for reading. This was his first step above the ordinary work of the common district school, and opened the way for the broader education and wider culture which were gained in later years.
By manual labor and by teaching school in the winter months he earned the means necessary to fit himself for college. His preparatory course was taken in an academy at New Hampton, N. H. From this place he went to Dartmouth College, from which he graduated with the class of 1851. After graduation he taught for a time in the school at New Hampton, and later for a year in Vermont.
Professor Putnam came to Michigan in the summer of 1854,
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES
and held the professorship of the Latin language and literature in Kalamazoo College for four or five years. He left the college to take charge of the public schools of the city of Kalamazoo. In this field of labor he showed good executive ability and skill in the work of organization. In 1865 he returned to the college and labored two or three years under the direction of Dr. John M. Gregory. On the resignation of President Gregory he was act- ing executive of the college for one year. In 1867 he was elected superintendent of the schools of Kalamazoo county. He resigned this position to accept a professorship in the normal school, entering upon his duties at the opening of the school year, 1868-9. His connection with the school has extended over a period of thirty years. During three years he was acting principal of the institution.
Professor Putnam served two years as alderman and two years as mayor of the city of Ypsilanti, and has always manifested a deep interest in the welfare and prosperity of the community in which he has had his home. . . For more than fifty years he has been a member of the Baptist church, and active in the work of the denomination. . . As a man, he is unassuming and retiring in his character, but positive in his opinions and firm in his convictions of duty in all the rela- tions of life. As a teacher, he appeals to a student's sense of honor, and seeks to develop the higher and nobler elements of his character, seeks to make his pupils men and women of the best kind, rather than simply scholars and teachers. Many a former normal student, now at work in the schools of the state, declares that the calm serenity of Professor Putnam's life and character goes with him as an inspiration in all his work. His deeds are as lighthouses, 'they do not ring bells or fire cannon to call at- tention to their shining - they just shine.'
As an indication of the high esteem in which he was held as a scholar, he received in 1897, the honorary degree of LL.D. from the University of Michigan." (From sketch of his life given by a friend in the History of Michigan State Normal School, pp. 150-152.)
We close this sketch by naming some of his published works: " Sunbeams through the Clouds " (a little manual for the special use of inmates of asylums for the insane), in 1871 ; " A Geog- raphy of Michigan," 1877, (published with Colton's geogra- phy) ; " A Sketch of Michigan State Teachers' Association," 1877, (published by the association); "Outline of the Theory
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HISTORY OF LYNDEBOROUGH
and Art of Teaching," 1883; "Manual of Pedagogics," 1895 ; " History of the State Normal School," 1899. (For his family see Genealogies.)
REV. JOHN RAND was the pulpit supply of the people of Lyndeborough for some months before being invited to become their pastor. They gave him the call Sept. 27, 1756, but he did not accept it until the next year. The church was organized Dec. 5, 1757, with about twenty members, eight of whom were males. Two days after the organization of the church, Dec. 7, Mr. Rand was ordained to the pastorate of it, as the first Con- gregational minister in Lyndeborough. From the proprietors of the town he received £40, as an encouragement to settle among the people. This sum was payable in three equal annual instal- ments, and beside this an annual salary of {40 was given him, and the society were "to provide a certain amount of wood, and one shilling each for each soul in town, and to increase the number of shillings according to the increase in the number of souls."
Mr. Rand lived the last part of his pastorate on the place now owned by Mrs. Charles R. Boutwell. But his term of service was very brief for those days, and after four years and four months, April 8, 1762, he was dismissed. Subsequent to his leaving Lyndeborough, he lived in Goffstown and Bedford, but was never afterward settled as pastor. He was justice of the peace under George III. He removed to Bedford in 1778. In 1783 we find his name in the Town Papers of N. H. as town clerk in Bedford, and also one of the selectmen .*
Of the children of Rev. John Rand one or two facts of interest may here be added : -
Nehemiah, who was born May 22, 1776, and died in Newport, N. H., January, 1869, married in New Boston, Mary, a lineal descendant of Gen. Putnam. They had nine children, two of whom, Edgar and Betsey, lived in Lyndeborough, for whom see genealogies of Rand and Dutton.
The daughter, Mary Putnam Rand, was born in New Boston, N. H., in 1811. In 1830 she united with the church, graduated at the New Hampton Seminary, and was sent to Illinois as a teacher, and is said to have been "one of the best known women who ever lived in Illinois. She was a Christian lady and a renowned educator." She became the wife of the Rev. J. G. Lemen, and they were the founders and managers of the
*Vol. XI., p. 185.
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES
" Christian Home Orphanage " at Council Bluffs, Iowa, which is now conducted by their son, H. R. Lemen .*
NEHEMIAH RAND, ESQ .- Nehemiah Rand was the ninth child of Jonathan and Mellecent (Estabrook) Rand, of Charlestown, Massachusetts, and a brother of Rev. John Rand. Following his father's occupation, he was a hatter by trade, and clearly seems to have been in affluent worldly circum- stances. He was a corporal in Brigden's company in 1757. On the 4th of April, 1766, he bought a tract of land in Lynde- borough, adjoining land owned by his brother. The place which he owned is now the property of Mr. William Clark, whose wife, Abby Kimball Rand, is a great grandchild of Nehemiah Rand, Esq. On this place he built a saw-mill, and here, at a later day, he built for himself a home. He was liv- ing in his native town when the War of the Revolution broke out. When the famous battle of Bunker Hill was fought, he owned land on Bunker Hill. Although the Americans made a splendid and destructive fight, they were finally driven out of their entrenchments and compelled to retreat. The British held possession of the battle-ground and their wrath found vent in the destruction of the town, which they wantonly burned. In the conflagration, Nehemiah Rand's two dwelling-houses and hat-shop were destroyed. Then, with his family, he fled for refuge to our town in the wilderness, where he had already a possession, and where he fixed his permanent home. His family consisted of his wife and two daughters, and "a lad named Nehemiah Frost, who had lived with him from early childhood." He became a prosperous and influential citizen of Lyndeborough, held a prominent place among its proprietors, was appointed a justice of the peace, and was honored by being chosen representative to the Legislature, or General Court of the State of New Hampshire for more than a single term. As one of the old Lyndeborough proprietors, he was especially serviceable to the corporation ; for he was one of the committee appointed to sell the common and undivided lands of Lynde- borough and Greenfield, to prosecute trespassers and to bring the affairs of the old "propriety " to a successful close, and on that business was very efficient. He was a member of that committee at the time of his death, which occurred July 10, I794. He was represented in subsequent meetings of the pro-
*Lemen Family History.
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HISTORY OF LYNDEBOROUGH
prietors by John Shepherd, Esq., of Amherst, whom he chose to be the executor of his last will and testament.
Nehemiah Rand, Esq., was thrice married. He married first, November 24, 1757, Mary Rand, daughter of Samuel and Sarah (Carter) Rand, who was born February 26, 1733 ; second, May 27, 1774, Mary, daughter of Rev. Thomas Prentice, of Charlestown, Mass., and widow of Doctor James Frost of Cambridge, Mass., who died July 2, 1770, aged 38. She died at Lyndeborough, October 20, 1787, in the 49th year of her age; third, was Margaret, daughter of Rev. Thomas Prentice, and sister of his second wife, who was married October 21, 1791. She died at the home of Nehemiah Frost in Temple. Five children of Nehemiah Rand, Esq., lived to a mature age ; namely, Mary, who married Richard Batten, Jr .; Elizabeth, who married Joseph Epps; Irene, who married Nehemiah Frost ; Nehemiah, who married Sarah Batten ; and Margaret, who married Deacon John Clark. For more respecting the families see genealogy of each family above mentioned.
CAPTAIN LEVI SPAULDING .- " The Spaulding Me- morial," compiled by Rev. Samuel Jones Spalding, who was born in Lyndeborough, December 11, 1820, furnishes many of the facts of the life of Captain Levi Spaulding. Page 48 of that work gives a brief sketch of his life, under number 1043. He was born in Nottingham West (now Hudson), N. H., Octo- ber 23, 1737, and died in Plainfield, Otsego Co., N. Y., March I, 1825. To the latter place he had removed from Lynde- borough about the year 1800. He was the son of Edward and Elizabeth Spaulding, who came to Lyndeborough in 1766, and bought the second division lots numbered 113 and 122. Two brothers of Edward are also said to have come to Lyndeborough, namely, Reuben and Stephen. "The Spaulding Memorial," however, makes no mention of these as citizens of Lynde- borough. It is probable that Levi came here about the same time as his parents; and very soon after that the town records show that he became a prominent citizen. He married first, Anna Burns; second, Mrs. Lois Goodridge, of Lyndeborough, December 30, 1778. In 1767, soon after he came into town, he was selected as one of a committee of five persons to forward the important work of " completing the meeting-house." From that time forward, his name frequently occurs in our town rec- ords, an evidence of his active interest in town affairs.
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At the breaking out of the Revolutionary War, Levi Spauld- ing recruited a company of sixty men, with whom he marched as captain, April 23, 1775, four days after the famous fight and flight from Concord and Lexington. Thomas Boffee was his 2nd lieutenant, William Lee and James Hutchinson were ser- geants, and twenty-three others of his neighbors and fellow- townsmen were in the ranks. A list of these is here appended .*
Corporal Benjamin Dike
Nathaniel Batchelder
Corporal Samuel Hutchinson
Phineas Barker
Fifer Jacob Dutton
Edward Bevins
James Campbell
Joseph Ellinwood
Nehemiah Hutchinson
Samuel McMaster
John Johnson
Andrew Thompson
Jesse Lund
Jacob Wellman t
John Rowe
Elisha Wilkins
Ephraim Smith
Josiah Woodbury
Isaac Carkin
Timothy McIntire
David Carlton +
Daniel Cram
Ezra Dutton
Captain Spaulding's company was number three, in the Third Regiment of N. H. Troops, commanded by Col. James Reed. The adjutant general of New Hampshire, in his report for 1866, Vol. 2, page 270, states, that "the New Hampshire troops," at Bunker Hill, " took their position at the rail fence, betwixt the redoubt and the Mystic River. They immediately threw up a sort of breastwork of stone across the beach to the river, and continued the rail fence down to this stone wall or breastwork. This wall served a most excellent purpose, as the sharp-shooters behind it could take the most deadly aim at the advancing foe ; and it is a well-established fact that the British troops in front of this wall were almost completely annihilated."
Captain Spaulding's company was under fire in that battle, and doubtless had its share of the fatal work there accomplished. Two of his men suffered as indicated in the preceding note, suf- fusing the soil with their blood. The captain was not only at Bunker Hill, but during the following winter went to Canada, and according to our town records, " Concluded the Same Back to Trenton." Seven of our townsmen accompanied him on that expedition, whose names are preserved. He was also " at Val- ley Forge during the terrible suffering in the winter of 1777 and 1778. He was afterwards transferred, and came under the im- mediate command of Gen. Washington. He served through the
* Rev. Rolls I, pp. 87-89. t See p. 203.
# See p. 177.
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war, and was present at the surrender of Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown. He received an honorable discharge from the War Department, and drew a captain's pension as long as he lived."*
Captain Spaulding's family consisted of six sons and five daughters. The names of his children were: Betsey, Olive, Edward, George, Martha, Esther, Levi, John, Sewell, Lois Goodrich and Benjamin Goodrich.
After the close of the war, he continued to take an active in- terest in town matters, and was honored with the various offices and responsibilities which his fellow citizens could confer. He was representative to the legislature from 1784 to 1786, inclu- sive ; and the Journal of the Legislature and other State papers testify to his activity in the heroic days of our country's history, and his name holds a most honored place in the annals of our town.
Few, if any, of his descendants now reside in Lyndeborough, though most of his children were born here. Edward Spauld- ing, his eldest son, was born in Lyndeborough, Nov. 19, 1764, and died in Alexander, Genesse Co., N. Y., Sept. 14, 1845. At an early day, he removed to Plainfield, Otsego Co., N. Y .; thence to Summer Hill, Cayuga Co., N. Y., and thence to Alexander, above mentioned, where both he and his wife died. He was a farmer. He married Mehitabel, the daughter of Rev. Sewall Goodrich of Lyndeborough, Oct. 30, 1788. She was born Sept. 25, 1770, and died July 31, 1838. Four of their children were born in Lyndeborough.
ELBRIDGE GERRY, the youngest, became one of the fam- ous men of his time as a lawyer and financier. He was born at Summer Hill, Cayuga Co. N. Y., Feb. 24, 1809. He studied and practised law at Batavia and Attica. In 1834 he removed to Buffalo, and there he was soon chosen to fill important offices. In 1847 he was elected mayor of Buffalo. He was elected mem- ber of Congress in 1848, and again to the same office in 1858 and 1860. He served four years on the committee of Ways and Means, and was the author of the Legal Tender Act, passed during the days of the Rebellion.
In a letter addressed to him under date of Aug. 3, 1869, the Hon. Charles Sumner wrote, " In all our early financial trials, while the war was most menacing, you held a position of great trust, giving you opportunity and knowledge. The first you
*Spaulding Memorial, p. 88.
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES
used at the time most patriotically, and the second you use now (in preparing a financial history of the war) for the instruction of the country."
Mr. Spalding was not only an eminent lawyer, but was also a successful banker in Buffalo, who by his talents, industry and economy, amassed an ample fortune.
REV. SAMUEL JONES SPALDING. - Of still another branch of the Spalding family was the author of the " Spauld- ing Memorial." The Rev. Samuel Jones Spalding was the son of Abijah Spalding, and was born in Lyndeborough, Dec. II, 1820. I11 1824 his parents removed to Nashua, where he pre- pared for college under the instruction of David Crosby, Esq. He entered Dartmouth College in 1838, graduating in 1842, and entering Andover Theological Seminary that year, graduated in 1845. He was pastor of the Whitefield Congregational Church in Newburyport, Mass., for many years. On leave of absence from his people, he was commissioned chaplain of the 48th Mass. Regiment, which served under Major General Anger, in the Army of the Gulf. This regiment was " at the siege of Port Hudson, being actively engaged in the first and second assaults on that stronghold, May 27 and June 14, and also in the fight at Donaldsonville, July 13. Was mustered out Aug. 30, 1863."*
Mr. Spalding is a member of "The New England Historic- Genealogical Society," and also corresponding member of the "State Historical Society of Wisconsin." His life and army service are creditable alike to his kindred and his native town.
Memorial, pp. 457, 458.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
PROFESSIONAL MEN, TRADESMEN, AUTHORS AND COLLEGE GRADUATES.
MINISTERS.
The list of natives of Lyndeborough who became ministers here given is in the order arranged by the secretary or librarian of The New Hampshire Historical Society, Concord, N. H. The record is partly that printed in the pamphlet, "Salem- Canada-Lyndeborough," by Rev. F. G. Clark.
James Boutwell. (See Genealogies.)
William Thurston Boutwell. (See Genealogies.)
David Burroughs was born Aug. 11, 1810. For a brief sketch see page 343. He was the son of Asa and Sarah (Butler) Bur- roughs.
Benjamin Franklin Clark. (See Genealogies and a mention of him on page 417.)
. William Clark, brother of Benjamin F. (See Genealogies.)
Frank Gray Clark. (See Genealogies.)
David P. French, born Feb. 1, 1817, was the son of Isaac P. and Clarissa (Barnes) French. He became a Baptist, and for brief notice of him, see page 343 of this history. He had sev- eral pastorates, both in this state and in Illinois, and died in Nashville, Illinois, April 29, 1886.
Eben E. Gardner, born 1807, was brought up from boyhood by David Putnam, deacon of the Baptist Church. Mr. Gardner is reported to have preached in Trumansburg, N. Y.
Ethan Allen Hadley was born Nov. 13, 1809. He was the son of Joshua and Betsey (Williams) Hadley ; preached in Jasper, N. Y., and died in Dix, N. Y., Apr. 24, 1867.
William, son of Ebenezer Hutchinson, was born April 4, 1794, and died April 20, 1842. He preached in Plainfield, and other places in New Hampshire.
John Jones, son of Joseph and Anna (Richardson) Jones, was born September 8, 1812, and was graduated from Dartmouth in 1834. He taught one year at Gloucester, Mass., and gradu- ated at Andover in 1838. He was ordained at Chittenden, Vt., July 1, 1841, and was pastor till 1844. He was agent of the
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PROFESSIONAL MEN
New Hampshire Bible Society from 1844 to 1846 ; teacher at Sandusky, O., 1848 to 1852 ; acting pastor at Danville, Ind., and Earlville, Il1., 1853 to 1855; agent of American Bible Society, Illinois, 1855 to 1862. Resided at Meriden, Ill., and Colorado Springs, where he died in August, 1889.
James Harvey Merrill, son of Rev. Nathaniel and Elizabeth (Carpenter) Merrill, was born October 16, 1814, and died Octo- ber 28, 1886. He was pastor at Montague and Andover, Mass.
Daniel Putnam, A.M., LL.D. Though not an ordained minister, he is a sound and acceptable preacher of Christ, and frequently assists his ministerial brethren by supplying their pulpits for them. (See Biographical Sketches.)
Samuel Jones Spalding, D.D., born December 11, 1820, long a pastor at Newburyport, Mass. Mr. Spalding was chaplain in the Civil War, and was the compiler of the History of the Spalding Family. He was accounted a very able and excel- lent minister.
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