USA > New Hampshire > Hillsborough County > Lyndeborough > The history of the town of Lyndeborough, New Hampshire, Vol. II > Part 5
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Opposite this is the house so long the home of the late C. Henry Holt, postmaster about twenty-four years, where he kept the post office. The house was built by Dr. Jonas
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Wheeler, whose daughter, Mary A., was the first Mrs. C. H. Holt. It is now the home of Mr. T. M. Beal, who married Miss Ardella, eldest daughter of Mr. C. Henry Holt. This house and grounds became her portion of her father's estate.
The adjoining place on the south is the home of Mrs. Dorcas A. Holt, widow of George Washington Holt, who was for a brief period a merchant in this village. The house is open more in the summer, as a resort for her relatives and her son's family, who here seek summer rest and recuperation.
South of this and opposite the blacksmith shop is the house owned and occupied several years by Mrs. W. H. Abbott. It was built by Mr. Joseph H. Ford. Here dwelt, for a time, Rev. Mr. Hussey, the Universalist minister, who preached to the believers in universal salvation, and occupied the Baptist meeting-house a portion of the time, for religious services. It was also the home of Mr. Jeremiah Hartshorn, and of his widow, Aunt Ruby, and of Harriet Russell, and of Mrs. Abigail, widow of Capt. Israel Putnam. It was for many years the property of Mr. J. H. Tarbell, who made to it the addition of the two-story part nearest the street.
The next house on the street going south is Mr. W. N. Cheever's, already described as that of Ephraim Putnam, 3rd., removed from its former foundation when the house of Capt. Eleazer Putnam was built, for a time used as a store, the first in the village, and later removed to its present place. Mr. Cheever has lived here since 1861, when he came from Lunenburg, Mass.
A few rods south of this, across the street, is the house of Mrs. Martha M., widow of the late Charles M. Butler. The main part of her house used to stand with side facing the street. At that time it contained a shoemaker's shop, and also a little store, which were kept by Mr. John J. Martin, a former land- lord of " The Forest House."
The ell of this house had previously been a separate build- ing, and contained a basement part. In this lived Mrs. David Gage and her mother for a time ; and here, also, Mrs. Ephraim Hildreth Putnam spent her last days.
Very close to this on the south is the residence of J. A. Johnson, Esq. The house was built by Mr. Francis Johnson, father of its present owner, is adapted for two families, and is occupied by both Mr. Johnson, himself, and his son-in-law, Mr. Frank J. Bishop.
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South of this, and on the other side of the street, is a new house, built in 1903, by Herbert A. Cheever, who learned the blacksmith business from his father, worked for him several years, and is now occupying a shop independently. His shop is near his house.
Nearly opposite the shop last named is the dwelling of W. H. Cheever, brother of Herbert. He bought a small building and lived in it a few years, and built later the two-story part, using the old part as the ell. He has now a pleasant, comfort- able home.
Still farther south and across the street is the home of Mr. John C. Carkin, who is employed by D. Whiting & Co., and has charge of the milk-house, and of their grain and feed sup- plies. The house was built in 1857 by Mrs. David Gage, and was sold to Mr. Olney P. Butler about 1865, and purchased by Mr. Carkin from the heirs of Mr. Butler.
On the same lot, a few rods south, is the old house in which John's father, Mr. David Carkin, lived several years. It is now owned by Fred Carkin, grandson of David, and second son of John.
Nearly opposite the last-named house is that of Mr. Edwin Wilkerson. It was built by Mr. Olney P. Butler in company with Mr. Hiram F. Blood of Wilton. It was for several years the home of Mr. George Butler, Olney's son, who sold it to Messrs. Byron Putnam and Walter S. Tarbell. Andrew J. Marshall occupied it a few years as tenant, after which it was purchased by its present owner. It has recently reverted to the Byron Putnam estate.
The next house below, on the road towards Wilton, was built by the sons of Major William Richardson whose wife was a daughter of Squire Daniel Putnam. After their father's decease, the sons removed to Milford where the next station on the B. & M. railroad, west of Milford village, is named for them, " Richardson's." The house was afterwards rented to several families, among whom were Mr. Joseph Blanchard, Mrs. Colby, whose son, John Freeman Colby, Esq., of Boston and Mont Vernon, won distingushed honor in his profession .*
* Here also lived Mr. Tidd whose daughter, a native of Lyndeborough, won great praise for her presence of mind a few years ago, as a teacher in Somerville, Mass. Discovering the great building in which she was teaching was on fire, she hastily but quietly informed the other teachers to arrange their scholars for fire drill, and got them all out, almost before they discovered any fire. None of the hundreds of pupils were injured, and her prompt action saved both the pupils and the building. The school board publicly thanked her afterwards for her heroic service.
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For the longest period in its history it has been the home of the Ross family, Mrs. Sarah Ross, widow of Samuel Ross, a veteran of the Civil War, and her children. It is now owned by Mrs. Clough of Lynn, Mass., as a summer residence.
The next house south, on the opposite side of the street, is that of Mr. George Ross, one of the fore-mentioned Ross family. It was built by Mr. Nathan Fish, the father of Mrs. Joseph Blanchard. It was the first house built by Mr. A. S. Conant, after learning his trade of house carpenter.
The last house in Lyndeborough, on the direct road to Wilton, is Mr. James Colson's. It was built by Mr. Quincy Young, who sold it to Mr. Orin Cran. The latter willed it to his son Nelson, who sold it to Mr. Colson. In 1905 it was pur- chased by Miss Ellen B. Churchill.
Before reaching Mr. Colson's house, a road turns to the left leading by where the glass factory used to stand. On this road the first house is that of Mr. George Winn, which he bought of Mr. Samuel Ross. This was used as a boarding house when the factory was in operation, and was managed by Mrs. Cutter, the mother-in-law of Samuel Ross, son of above named veteran.
A little farther along, on the right hand, is the dwelling of Mr. Benjamin Joslin, R. F. D. carrier No. I. It was built by the late Mr. J. D. Putnam, agent, and apparent proprietor of the glass factory. After his decease the house was for a time occupied by his daughters, Misses Emma D. and Grace E. Put- namn. It was finally sold to Mr. George Butler, who improved the grounds, added the granite curbing, and, after making im- portant changes in and about the house itself, sold it to Mr. Joslin, its present occupant.
Next to this on the same side of the road is a small house, formerly the office of the glass factory, which Mr. Willis H. Draper bought and changed to a dwelling, in which he lived several years. He removed to Nashua, and the house is now owned by Mr. J. Alonzo Carkin and occupied by his brother, Fred Carkin.
Turning from the latter house towards the village again, the house on the right is Mr. Willie C. Carkin's, who sold it to Mr. Harry Draper, and recently bought it back and now occupies it.
Continuing still towards the R. R. station, the house on the left is Mr. H. E. Emery's. It was built by his uncle, Morris M. Emery, who lived in it several years, and died in March, 1886. His wife died in 1887, and the house became the prop-
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erty of his nephew above named, as the only male heir of the Emery family.
Across the street, nearly opposite, is the house of Mrs. Sharpe, widow of the late Joseph Sharpe. The house was built by Mr. William Young, who lived in it a few years, then sold it to Mr. Sharpe, and removed to Manchester.
The next house on the same side of the street is Mr. Milo Burton's. He is foreman on this section of the B. & M. rail- road. The house was built by the late J. H. Tarbell, Esq., about the year 1877. It was for years the property of Mr. Edward Hall, who repaired and made important changes in its interior, and later removed to Antrim. Mr. Burton bought it of Mr. Hall.
Nearly opposite Mr. Burton's, across the street, is Mr. W. A. Barden's house. It was built by Mr. L. P. Jensen, an active, worthy citizen, a member of the Congregational church, and for several years the efficient superintendent of the Baptist Sunday School. He was a carpenter by trade. In 1892, he sold his house to Mr. Barden, and removed with his family to California.
Very close to Mr. Burton's house is that which was originally built on the same plan, and by the same person, J. H. Tarbell, Esq. It was for several years owned by Mr. Mullin, a glass worker, who, after the closing of the glass works here, removed to New York State. It was let a few years to Mr. A. J. Marshall; afterwards, it was bought and occupied by Herbert A. Cheever, and after a few years, was sold to Mr. S. S. Harts- horn, its present owner.
The next house across the way, and set back from the street, is that built and occupied by the late Mr. Byron Putnam. It is now the property of his adopted daughter, K. Frances Put- nam, who is now Mrs. James A. G. Putnam.
Passing under the railroad bridge still west, the house on the right hand, reached by two sets of steps ascending the terraces, is the home of Mrs. Ann M., widow of the late John M. Emery. Mr. Emery was for many years a successful teacher of both vocal and instrumental music. He built the house, lived in it many years, and died in it Sept. 6, 1891. It was first a cottage of a story and a half; but a few years ago bay windows were added, and an increased elevation of the front gave more room within, and gave the whole a finer appearance.
The next place on the opposite side of the street, is the resi-
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dence of Mr. Albert S. Conant, a veteran of the Civil War, and a house carpenter, whose hands have been employed on many of the houses in our village. His dwelling has often accom- modated two families. Among its tenants were Charles H. Wilson, Mrs. George Bishop, Edward Hall, Mrs. Octavia Shedd, W. H. Cheever, Mrs. Letitia McGinley, W. H. Dolliver, Thomas Ross, J. A. Carkin, Miles Wallace, Hartwell Steplien- son, Will Carkin, twice, Roy Burton, Frank Haley, Mrs. Addie M. Heath, W. H. Abbott, Dustin Wheeler, and John E. Dol- liver, twice.
Nearly opposite Mr. Conant's is the residence of Mrs. Fanny Putnam and her sisters, the Misses Clara and Harriet Brown. It was built by the late John Fletcher Holt, whose widow, Mary A. (Brown) Holt obtained a life lease of the place. The present occupants were her sisters, and were living with her when she died, Jan. 29, 1897. The place then became the property of Miss Flora M. Holt, grand-daughter of John Fletcher Holt, and was purchased from her by Mrs. Putnam, its present owner.
We return again to the railroad station. The house was built by Mr. J. H. Tarbell as an armory for the Lafayette Artillery. It occupies a portion of the ground on which the Baptist meeting-house originally stood. Mr. Tarbell offered to give the Baptists the lot on which their meeting-house now stands for their old lot, and also agreed to assist them in mov- ing their house to its location. The offer was accepted, and the building now used as a railroad station was erected in 1863. When the Wilton railroad came through, Mr. Tarbell sold the place to the railroad company. The building contains a tene- ment in which resides the station agent, Mr. E. A. Danforth, who has held his position about thirty years. Over the main part of the building is a hall, used by the Lafayette Artillery until Citizens' Hall was built. It was known as "armory hall."
The next place north of the R. R. station is the Baptist meeting-house, described more fully in the history of the church.
North of the Baptist meeting-house is a lane running east- ward, on the south side of which and directly in rear of the meeting-house is a building used as a storehouse by Mr. Everett Cram. On the north side of this lane are first several horse- sheds. Then eastward is the residence of Mr. James Colson. The main part of the house was formerly a meat market, and
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stood across the street in front of W. H. Cheever's house. It was then the property of Mr. Albro Wilson, who sold it to Mr. Albert Cram and moved to Milford. Mr. Cram kept the market a short time, assisted by Mr. D. B. Sargent, after which he sold it to Mr. J. H. Tarbell, who moved it to its present location. He sold it again to Mr. Miles Wallace, who kept it himself, and let it to various persons, viz .: Roy Burton, Andrew Marshall, Jason Holt, and Will C. Carkin, who finally bought it, and changed it to a dwelling. Byron Putnam accepted security on the property and the ell was added by his co-operation. Mr. Carkin lived in it but a short time and moved to Nashua, when it came into Mr. Putnam's possession. After his death his leirs sold it at auction. It was bought by Mr. Milo Burton, who sold it to John Dolliver, who recently sold it to Mr. James Colson, its present occupant.
The next house, near the pine grove, is Mr. Albert Cram's, who built it about the time that the railroad came into the place. Unable to get a lot on either of the thoroughfares, Mr. Joel H. Tarbell sold him the lot on which he built his home. His niece, Miss Irene Cram, was brought up by her uncle, and married Mr. Walter Patterson, and they have their home in Mr. Cram's house.
The dwelling next north of the Baptist church is the so-called " brown cottage," now the home of Mrs. Edwin Swasey. The late Joel H. Tarbell gave Mrs. Swasey, his sister, the use of this property during her life. Mr. Tarbell bought one of the buildings which the R. R. company wished to dispose of, re- moved it to this location, and remodelled it into a dwelling house, having Mr. Albert Cram as mechanic.
For a time Mr. Tarbell fitted up a small dry goods store in the front part of the house, and stocked it for his grand-daughter, Miss Minnie Stacey. But the business did not seem to pay, and so was soon given up. The rooms were again changed into living apartments, and were occupied a while by Mrs. E. C. Tarbell and son, Charles H .; and also, by Mr. Dustin Wheeler and J. A. Carkin. They are now the home of Mr. Roy N. Putnam, our postmaster.
Passing by the " Pine Grove House " already described, and going toward Greenfield, less than half a mile from our post- office are four more dwellings, which are part of South Lynde- borough. The first of these is Mrs. George Willis Hadley's house, two-story, built in 1899 and 1900, near the railroad cross-
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ing, west of the cut. It is of modern construction and appoint- inents, and a good windmill forces water from the well into all parts of the house. It is a handsome dwelling, and the first one in our vicinity to be furnace heated.
Farther west, on the same side of the street, is Mr. Charles Clement's home, a pretty cottage, newly painted in 1904. Mr. Clement is a house carpenter, who built his house in 1877, and lived here until 1893, when he removed to Mass. He was em- ployed several years on the bridge building department of the N. Y., N. H. & H. R.R. But last year he returned, and is now occupying his own house. During his absence the house was let to several tenants, among whom were Mr. Dustin Wheeler, Mr. Dana Hadley and Mr. John Dolliver.
Opposite Mr. Clement's is the house of Mr. George M. Cramn. It was built by Mr. Levi Tyler in its present form, and Mr. Cram has lived in it about thirty-two years.
The road which branches from the Forest road to the centre of the town, between Mr. G. M. Cram's house and that of Mr. Joseph A. Blanchard, has on it three dwellings. The first of these is about three-fourths of a mile from the Forest road, and is the Kidder place, now the home of Ethan A. Woodward. Mr. W. married Elizabeth Rebecca Kidder, the only living child of Mr. Franklin H. Kidder, and through his wife and also the good will of her parents, he, after his wife's decease on July 20, 1904, became possessor of that part of the original Kidder es- tate. The succession was John, Ephraim, Thomas, Franklin Holt, Elizabeth Rebecca (Kidder) Woodward.
On what was also a part of the John Kidder place is the home of Fred Moore, son of Harriet Moore, whose inother was Martha Harriet (Kidder) Moore, wife of Cyrus Moore. The latter is credited with having built the house in which his grandson now lives.
Next north of this lives Mrs. Mary, widow of the late Deacon S. S. Cummings. The house is now the home of one of her grand-daughters, Mrs. Hayford, who has two children. Deacon Cummings died in 1897, and Mrs. C. keeps possession of the home. The house was built by Mr. Francis Johnson, the father of J. A. Johnson, Esq.
Next west of Mr. Cram's is the residence of Mr. Joseph A. Blanchard, nearly in front of a road which comes in from the southwest to the Forest road. The place is said to have had three dwellings on it. A little to the north of the present house
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was one in which Mr. Daniel Cram used to live. He sold out to Mr. Samuel Woodward, the father of the late Foster Wood- ward. Mr. Levi Tyler was next owner, who built the present dwelling and sold to John Lynch, who again sold to Mr. Luke A.ยบ Lucas, Mr. Blanchard's predecessor. He, the latter, has been the longest occupant of it. He was a soldier in the 8th N. H. V., and was in the battle of Port Hudson.
On the same road farther west is the home of Elmer E. Blanchard, son of Joseph A. He succeeded Frank Eaton, - whose parents died on the place and were carried to Somerville, Mass., for burial. The place had been previously owned by Mr. Joseph Chamberlain, a member of the Baptist church, called " Baptist Joe," to distinguish him from brickmaker Joe, who was called " Brick Joe." The latter was the father of our townsman, Mr. Rufus Chamberlain. The Eatons bought the place of Mr. Byron Putnam, from whom Mr. Blanchard also bought it.
A short distance farther on, the old road passed up the hill a little west of north, to the Jotham Hildretlt place, home of both father and son of that name. The old road passed by the Hil- dreth place and continued nearly the same course, and came out at the Forest road near the No. 9 schoolhouse. After the late Jotham Hildreth's death Mr. Herbert Wilkerson bought the place and sold it to the late Mr. Humphrey Gould, whose family have greatly improved the house and its surroundings, make it their permanent home and also entertain summer guests.
Near this house on its north side, is a road which crosses the old road and passes down the hill, crossing the Forest road near Mr. Edward Dolliver's, and descending a steep hill, turns sharply to the left, at its foot, and crosses the B. & M. R. R. A little farther on, it crosses the Rocky River. At this point in early days was Sargent's mill, a wool carding and fulling mill. Later a cabinet shop was carried on here, by John Newell and still later by Daniel Cragin, now of Wilton, who for a while had Mr. Albert Cram as a partner. He sold to Mr. Gage, and the latter to Mr. Jacob Crosby, who died suddenly while owner. After his death Mr. Alvaro Buttrick bought it and carried it on a number of years, and sold it to Warren A. Eaton. The latter carried it on till his health failed and he removed to Somerville, Mass. He had made a number of improvements in the way of repairs in both the mill and dwelling. The property was
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bought by Mr. George W. Eastman, who managed it but a short time, and sold out to its present owner, B. W. Colburn.
The next neighbor west of this is Mr. G. W. Eastman. By trade he is a jeweller and repairs clocks, watches, etc. He came to the farm for his health and has added to his farm work the management of a green house, doing considerable business as florist. He also works at his trade as opportunities offer. His place was previously the home of the late Adoniram Russell.
The straight road up the hill northwest of Mr. Eastman's leads to Mr. William Dolliver's. His predecessor was David S. Draper. Thomas J. Draper afterwards lived with his father, David S., took care of him in his last days and succeeded in ownership of the place. After the latter's decease Mr. Dolliver bought it.
West of the last named William Dolliver, lives his brother, Samuel Dolliver, in the old home of his ancestors. The house is reported to have been built by John Beasom who came here from Marblehead, Mass. in 1775 with his father, Philip. The latter was the grandfather of the late Capt. John Dolliver, wlio lived and died where his son Samuel now lives.
Starting again from the village of South Lydeborough, at the western crossing of the railway, a short. piece of the highway passes southwest from the Forest road towards Temple. After crossing the track of B. & M. R. R., the first house, now occu- pied by Mrs. Dale, was the residence of the late Joel H. Tar- bell, Esq., and here both he and his wife ended their days. It was formerly both the store and the residence of Mr. William W. Young who sold his entire property to the R. R. company, and returned to Chelsea, Mass., about 1874. The R. R. com- pany sold the store to Mr. Tarbell who was its original builder. He moved it back from the railroad and changed it wholly into a dwelling, occupying it till his death, in 1891. His wife, also, Mrs. Esther Putnam Tarbell, continued to reside here till she died, in November, 1901. After this, Mr. Andrew J. Marsliall, a civil war veteran, with greatly impaired health, lived in a part of the house, and died in March, 1902.
Mrs. Dale became the next tenant and continues so in 1905.
The next building is the hair-dressing shop of Mr. John Page, put up about the time that the location of a glove factory was anticipated in our village.
The next place is the home of Mr. Roy Burton, who bought
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the place of Mr. Andy Cram. The latter lived here many years, and made considerable addition to it. Here lived Mr. Joel Tar- bell, father of Capt. Joel H., and also Mrs. Abigail Hadley.
Near this, on the opposite side of the street, is the home of Mr. A. T. Ford, whose wife died here a few weeks ago. On this ground was an old house occupied in 1835 by Ebenezer Pearson, Jr., the maternal grandfather of Mrs. Joel H. Tarbell. It was later the home of Mr. Joseph H. Ford. The old house was torn down and the present one built by Mr. A. T. Ford, who is a carpenter and wheelwright, and has a small shop near his house. Other tenants were Dustin Wheeler and Mrs. Le- titia McGinley.
Close by Mr. Ford's shop is the blacksmith shop of Mr. W. H. Abbott.
Still westward on the south side of the road is the house said to have been built for the miller who conducted the Bradford grist mill. The house stands a little away from the roadside, and previous to 1840 was the home of Elijah Upton, who married first, Alice Putnam, and second, Sally Bradford, daughter of the mill owner. It became afterwards the home of Salathiel Lidson Wheeler, and is now the property of his widow, who lives with her daughter Minnie, the wife of George Blanchard, in Green- field.
Fred A. Carkin was living here when in June, 1904, he be- came the victim of a mysterious and almost fatal accident. He was assisting to kill and bury a horse when a bullet glanced from the animal, struck Mr. Carkin in the chest, and, as was supposed, lodged near his spinal column. Much sym- pathy was felt for him and his family of wife and six little children, and the kindly assistance possible was extended generally. He lingered long on the boundary, seemingly be- tween life and death, but has survived till now, July, 1905, and is able to perform some light kinds of labor.
The house is much out of repair, and is at present vacant.
After ascending the steep hill west of the river, one comes to the residence of Mr. Isaac Lowe, where reside also Mr. Jason Holt and his son-in-law, Mr. John Curtis. The buildings are pleasantly situated and comparatively new. On this place, about a century ago, lived Thomas Bradford, son of Capt. John Bradford of Amherst, and brother of Ephraim Putnam Bradford, the long time pastor of the Presbyterian church, New Boston. Thomas Bradford came here from Hancock about 1803. He
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was the owner of the grist mill above mentioned. Both he and his wife died on the place. His son, James C., lived with his parents, and received the place for the service rendered them in their last days. James afterward sold the place to Andrew Tyler, and Mr. Tyler again sold it to Mr. Charles Tarbell, his brother-in-law, who lived on the place several years, and sold to Mr. Lowe, the present owner.
The next place southwest is Mr. Benjamin Martin's. He came here from Hancock about three years ago, and has again sold his place and is about to leave town.
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