USA > New Hampshire > Hillsborough County > Manchester > Willey's semi-centennial book of Manchester, 1846-1896, comprised within the limits of the old Tyng Township, Nutfield, Harrytown, Derryfield, and Manchester, from the earliest settlements to the present time > Part 13
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W ILLIAM PARKER CLARK, son of Dea- con William Danforth and Almira Eliza- beth (Dodge) Clark, was born in Derry, April 30, 1845. He was educated in the public and in select schools in the adjoining town of Auburn, after- ward taking a commercial course at Comers' Col- lege in Boston. In the spring of 1863 Mr. Clark went to Nashua, and worked on a farm the three following summers for Mr. George McQuesten, who took a kindly and salutary interest in his welfare, and whose influence upon him was as good as that of a parent. In October, 1865, he entered the ser- vice of Holt & McQuesten, flour and grain dealers, in the Laton build- ing, Railroad square, and by con- stant attention to business he gained the confidence of his employers and became a member of the firm. In
later years the busi- ness was trans- ferred to the store WILLIAM PARKER CLARK. under the First Baptist Church, Main street, where it is still carried on under the firm name of McQuesten & Co., the firm consisting of Ezra P. Howard, William P. Clark, and Joshua W. Hunt. In 1868 Mr. Clark married Miss Elizabeth S. Davis of Dover, N. H. Three daughters have been added to the family : Lillian, Vennie Ethel, and Evangelyn May Clark. Mr. Clark has always taken a deep interest in political affairs, being a Republican. He is also an active member of the First Congregational Church.
DIOCESE OF MANCHESTER.
R T. REV. DENIS M. BRADLEY, first Catho- ship with great executive ability and personal traits lic bishop of Manchester, was born in Ire- that have endeared him to hosts of non-Catholics, and he has thus been able to allay much of the prejudice that has always existed in New Hamp- shire against his religion. The first Catholic church in the state was built in 1823 by Rev. Virgil H. Barber, a convert. Ten years later another church was erected at Dover, and for twenty years these were the only Catholic churches in New Hampshire. In 1847 Rev. John B. Daly, a _ Franciscan father, began a church in Manchester. The Sisters of Merey, the first religious commu- nity established in New Hampshire, came to Manchester under Mother Francis Warde, at the request of Rev. Wm. MeDonald, in 1860. At the time of Bishop Bradley's con- secration in St. Joseph's Church, which is now his cathedral, there were thirty-seven churches and chapels in the state, and thirty-cight priests. The Catholic popula- tion of New Hamp- shire was about 50,000, and there were 3,500 RT. REV. DENIS M. BRADLEY. pupils in the Catholic schools. In the eleven years of Bishop Bradley's administration the num- ber of Catholics in the state has increased to nearly 90,000, and there arc about 10,000 pupils in the Catholic schools. The diocese contains thirty- two parochial schools for boys and the same num- ber for girls; there arc five high schools for boys. six academies for young ladies, one college and five orphan asylums. The other Catholic institutions in the state include six convents of brothers. twenty convents of sisters, three hospitals, four land Feb 25, 1846. When he was eight years of age his mother came to America and with her five children settled in Manchester. After attending the Catholic schools of the town, the boy was sent to the College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, and upon graduating from that institution he entered upon the study of theology in St. Joseph's Pro- vincial Seminary at Troy, N. Y., and was there ordained to the priesthood June 3, 1871, by Rt. Rev. Bishop McQuaid of Rochester. Manchester at that time belonged to the diocese of Portland, and Bishop Bacon ap- pointed the young priest to the cathedral in the latter city, where he remained during the lifetime of that prelate, serving during the last two years as rector of the cathedral and chan- cellor of the diocese. He continued to dis- charge the same duties under Bishop Healey until June 16, 1880, when he was appointed pastor of St. Joseph's Church, Manchester. Upon the erection of the state of New Hampshire into a separate dio- cese in 1884, Father Bradley was recommended for the new see by the bishops of New England on account of his zeal and services in parochial duties and his experience in diocesan affairs, gained in Portland. He was accordingly appointed by Pope Leo XIII and consecrated June 11, 1884. Under his wise administration the cause of Catho- licity has prospered wonderfully in New Hamp- shire. He combines the rare qualities of leader-
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homes for aged women and three homes for work- ing girls. There are eighty Catholic priests in the state, fifty churches with resident priests, seven- teen missions connected with the church, two new
ST. JOSEPH'S CATHEDRAL, MANCHESTER.
churches building, seventeen chapels and twenty- seven stations. It is doubtful if any other religious denomination can show such a rapid growth within so short a time.
G EORGE EDWARD SEAVEY, the son of Benjamin and Sarah (Coburn) Seavey, was born in Pelham June 20, 1839, and from his ear- liest years has been engaged in the operation of sawmills and cider presses. He parents had not the means of giving him any educational ad- vantages, but he early learned by experience the principles of business and the value of money, pur- chasing his first jackknife with money earned in saving the wages of an assistant about the mills.
In the spring of 1852 he moved with his parents to Windham and operated a sawmill and cider press for thirteen years. The mill was on the turnpike near a place of historic interest known as the Bessells Camp. In the winter of 1865 Mr. Seavey, in partnership with John S. Brown and Nathaniel H. Clark, crected a steam sawmill at Windham Junction, the first sawmill operated by steam in the town. The addition of cider presses and tanks completed the foundation of an industry for Windham that has brought prosperity to the partners and materially enhanced the value of real estate in the vicinity and continues to encourage in- crease of population. Ordinarily from six to eight
GEORGE EDWARD SEAYEY.
men are employed in the mill yard, but at times the number is greatly increased. In the winter of 1893-94 fifty horses were required for the trans- portation of lumber ; at present twenty-four are in constant use. The chief articles of manufacture
WILLEY'S BOOK OF NUTFIELD.
are unplaned box boards, the amount of lumber converted into boards averaging one million feet annually for the last ten years. In the eider mak- ing season two hydraulic presses with a capacity of three hundred barrels in ten hours are used, and one of the tanks contains one hundred and fifty and the other seventy-five barrels. About 95 per cent of the cider is sold to be manufactured into vinegar. Over four thousand barrels of cider are annually made at this mill in Windham, and a single vinegar firm has received $100,000 worth of cider from this mill in the past twenty years.
Mr. Seavey was married Nov. 10, 1868, to (McGregor) Ballou of Derry, who was born Feb. 7, 1842. Her ancestry is traced baek through suc- cessive generations of the MaeGregors to the first settlers of Londonderry, and the traditions of the family extend to the old country, from which in 1719 these pioncers received letters of intelligence from their relatives in Armagh and Antrim, Ireland. Mr. Seavey was selectman of Windham from 1879 to 1881 inclusive. In 1882 he represented his town in the State Legislature, and he has also
served as supervisor for six years, having been re- elected for the fourth term.
SINCERITY was a striking characteristic of the men who settled Nutfield. They were called obstinate sometimes, and it was a Scotchman him- self who said : " It behooves a Seotchman to be right ; for if he be wrong, he be forever and eter- nally wrong." An anecdote is related of one of the descendants of the Nutfield Scotchmen which breathes the spirit of the first generation. He had been elected to the General Court from London- derry, and at the close of the session the friends of plimentary resolution for him. The Londonderry member, it was well known, differed from that offi- cial in politics and religion, and even had doubts of his honesty. His friends, therefore, dreading to encounter the public opposition of the outspoken " gentleman from Londonderry," thought it pru- dent to show him the resolution in private, before it was offered. It was in the ordinary form, to present "the thanks of the assembly to the presid- ing officer for the dignity, ability, and integrity
Mary Ballou, daughter of Edward and Isabella . the presiding officer had prepared the usual com-
GEORGE E. SEAVEY'S RESIDENCE.
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with which he had discharged his duties." The Bromfield street. For the past few years he has member from Londonderry perused the paper deliberately, and then remarked : "There is but one word in the resolution that I object to ; just strike out the little word integrity, and I will vote for the rest cheerfully." It was thought best to expunge the obnoxious word, and so the resolution stands recorded to this day.
W TILLIAM G. BAKER, son of John and Lucy (Gay) Baker, was born on the En- glish Range, Derry, June 9, 1845. He is a descend- ant of Robert Baker, who came from England early in the settlement of this country and settled in Beverly, Mass. He received a common school
WILLIAM G. BAKER.
been in the real estate business. Ile represented Ward 23, Boston (West Roxbury District), in the Legislature for two years, serving with much ability, and acting as clerk of the insurance com- mittee, clerk of the committee on public service, and as chairman of the committee on federal relations. His name has been often mentioned as candidate for state senator and also for alderman of the city, but on account of business interests he has refused to continue in political life. He is prominently identified with fraternal beneficiary societies, and is a member of the Royal Arcanum, the Ancient Order of United Workmen, and others. For about twenty years he has lived in that part of Ward 23, Boston, known as Egleston Square. Hc has three children : William W., Alice M., and Florence H. The son, William W., is now in Harvard College.
THE BEAR AND THE SAWMILL. There is an ancedote in connection with the two James Wilsons and the second sawmill located upon the upper course of the Aiken brook, which may seem somewhat apocryphal, but is neverthe- less well vouched for. The Wilsons werc aceus- tomed to carry their dinners to the mill and eat while sawing through a long log. One day they placed a long log on the carriage, set the saw in motion and sat down on the log with the dinner pail between them. Thus eating their dinner and moving from time to time in advance of the saw until it had passed the middle, they changed their places behind it, still riding on the moving carriage. Suddenly a bear appeared upon the scene, and the men, having no firearms, hastily climbed over the low braces of the roof into safe places upon the tie bcams. The bear came straight into the mill, climbed upon the log where the men had been sitting, and began eating the remnants of the din- ner, with his back to the saw. Presently the saw worked along the log until it nipped the short tip of the bear's tail. Hc gave an angry snarl and hitched himself along a few inches, so intent upon his feast that he scarcely minded the incident. A moment later the saw came up to him again, this
education and after a few terms at Pinkerton Academy completed his cducation by a course in a commercial college. When a young man he went to Boston, where he engaged in active business, and for over twenty years carried on a successful business in upholstery and interior decorations on ' time catching and tcaring a gash in his back instead
WILLEY'S BOOK OF NUTFIELD,
of his tail. In great rage the bear turned around with his mouth wide extended and both forepaws ready to strike an enemy. Seeing the moving saw and associating it with the cause of his pain and misfortune, he attempted to bite it and at the same time clasped it with his powerful paws. The result was such a deep cut in his forehead that he rolled off on the floor and died in a few minutes.
R EV. ORRIN G. BAKER, youngest son of John and Lucy (Gay) Baker, was born on the English Range, Derry, Dec. 23, 1847. Having fitted for college at Pinkerton Academy, he grad- uated from Dartmouth in 1874, and from Andover Theological Seminary in 1877. He taught school
REV. ORRIN G. BAKER.
a number of terms during his course of study. After graduating from the Seminary, he was or- dained and installed over the Congregational Church at Jamaica, Vt., where he remained ncarly eight years and a half. He was then pastor two years at East Fairfield, Vt., and six years at West Charlestown, Vt., and has just accepted a call to Ferrisburgh, Vt. He has been very suc- cessful in all the varieties of church work, especially in reaching and helping young people. Hc has always been interested in education, at times as
superintendent of schools, and always ready to help in cvcry work for the welfare of the com- munity and town. Both as a man and for his work, he has been respccted and loved by the people. Hc marricd Alida M., daughter of Har- rison G. and Eliza (Hall) Barnes of Walpole, N. H. They have six children : Harrison Barnes, John William, Eliza Lucinda, Paul Gay, Stella Kellogg, and Edward Edmunds.
A FEW RECORDS OF THE PROVINCE touching the early settlers of Londonderry are given below. The first bears date June 26, 1718, and is an order of the Governor and Council :
I. Whereas there are sundry familys of credit and reputa- tion late arrived in this Government from Ireland, most of them being farmers, and disposed either to buy or rent lands, if to be had at reasonable terms wthin this Province,
Ordered, That publick notice be given throughout the Province, thereof, that any p'sons inclined either to lett or sell land, may have an opportunity so to do.
RICHARD WALDRON, Cler. Con.
SCHOOLS.
2. December 23, 1727. In the House of Representatives.
Ordered, Upon the motion of James McKeen, Esq .. and considering the Infancy of the Town of London Derry. Provided they keep two Schools for writing and reading in said Town, that they be exempted from the Penaltys in the Laws of this Province relating to Grammar Schools, for one year now next ensuing, and to commence from their annual meeting in March next, and all courts that have authority in that affair are to take notice of this order and conform according to it.
JAMES JEFFRY, Cler. Assm.
In towns of one hundred families, the penalty for not maintaining a grammar school in which Latin was taught was {20 for six months' neglect.
The reason that Mr. McKecn assigned for this motion was, that " the charge of the Grammar School will maintain two other Schools for reading and writing, which is much more beneficial to them ; few, if any of them, being able to give their children Grammar learning."
LINEN MANUFACTURES.
3. In the House of Representatives. May 7th. 1731.
Whereas there are great frauds and deceit practiced by persons travelling in this Province by selling of Foreign Linnens under pretence they were made at Londonderry, in this Province.
WILLEY'S BOOK OF NOTFIELD.
which tends to the Damage of those who really make and sell the Linen in Londonderry, &c., for prevention of which and for encouraging the manufacturing Linen in said Town,
Filed, That an Act be drawn up authorizing the said Town to make choice of a suitable person to seal all such linen as shall be made in the said Town, and to have a Seal with the name of the Town engraved on it, and authority to such sealer (if suspect 'twas not made in the Town) to administer an oath to the per- sons that bring linen to be sealed, that it was bona fide made in said town.
H ENRY GOODWIN, the second son of Josiah Goodwin, of whom mention is made else- where in this work, was born in Londonderry, N. H., March 30, 1835. Until twenty-four years
HENRY GOODWIN.
of age he remained with his parents on the farm. In 1859, after having served for a time on the school committee and having had some experience as a school teacher, he went to Boston and engaged in the newspaper business as a carrier. He fol- lowed this occupation for eight years successfully,
when he sold his interest and formed a partnership which eventuated in the establishment of the Crawford House, Boston, where he has contin- uously served his patrons for nearly thirty years. In 1889 George HI. Rimbach became a partner with Mr. Goodwin, and the firm has continued as Goodwin & Rimbach. In 1860 he married Mary A. Moar of Londonderry, the ceremony being performed by the Rev. William House, then pastor of the Presbyterian Church. Their silver wedding was appropriately celebrated May 17, 1885. Arthur Worthington, their only child, was born in 1865 and died in 1870. Mr. and Mrs. Goodwin are members of the First Congregational Church, Charlestown. He fully appreciates the advantages of a godly ancestry, the inheritance of a strong constitution, and the possible blessings which in after years may come to one who has toiled in the woods during the rigorous winter months, and in the rocky soil of Rockingham the rest of the year, which yields such a reluctant recompense for the seed and service of the tiller. He has still a fondness for the home of his child- hood and a deep interest in all that pertains to the welfare and prosperity of his native state and the goodly town of Londonderry.
E 'PIDEMIC DISEASES have been very in- frequent in the healthful regions settled by the men of Nutfield. Only twice have serious epidemies raged. The first time was in 1753, when a malady much resembling the yellow fever of later years carried off many of the inhabitants, in- cluding some of the principal citizens. In 1812 the spotted fever caused many deaths in the com- munity. Alexander Anderson, who lived in the West Parish, lost three children, David Anderson four, Robert Taylor four, and William Thomp- son two. The sickness was so general that the physicians were unable to attend to all the cases, and doctors from abroad were employed by the town. Bleeding was the principal means of cure resorted to, and Christopher Thom, Abraham Morrison, and Joseph Gregg went from house to house with lancets. Many pa- tients recovered in spite of the bleeding.
HON. MOODY CURRIER.
BY HENRY M. BAKER.
M OODY CURRIER is emphatically a self- made man. By his own industry and econ- omy he raised himself from the country school to college honors, from poverty to wealth, from ob- scurity to distinction in business, politics, and letters, from a humble station to the highest office of our state. Moody Currier was born in Boscawen, N. H., April 22, 1806. His early years were passed on a farm. There he became in- ured to work and learned that nothing of value is secured without toil. That is the secret of his successful life. Amid the busy scenes of active farming he pursued the studies preparatory to col- lege. He had no idle timc - for him there were no leisure hours. Every moment was given to work or study. He graduated with high honors from Dartmouth College in 1834, de- livering the Greek oration. His alma mater and another college have conferred upon him the degrec of Doctor of Laws. After graduation Mr. Currier for several years was in charge of the Academy at Hopkinton, N. H., and later of the High School at Lowell, Mass. As a teacher he was thorough and successful. No subject was left unexhausted and by his own enthusiasm he aroused the zeal of his pupils. He devoted all his spare time to the study of law. In this manner, by continuous ap- plication, he fitted himself for his profession. In
the spring of 1841 Mr. Currier went to Manches- ter and was admitted to the bar of Hillsborough county. For several years he practised law with success, occasionally writing upon current and literary topics for newspapers and magazines. A financial business life had many allurements for him, and he aban- doned the law for finance. His distin- guished career in connection with the Amoskeag bank, the Amoskeag Savings bank, the Amoskeag National bank, and People's Savings bank, is the history of the great pros- perity of those sev- eral institutions. As a financier his repu- tation is unequalled in New Hampshire. He has been con- nected with many of the business enter- prises of his city and state, and has large interests in their manufactures and railroads.
HON. MOODY CURRIER.
the state.
His fellow-citizens have bestowed upon him nearly all the prominent offices of As senator, president of the senate, councillor, and governor, he not only justified the expectations of his friends, but conferred honor upon the state. His administration as governor in 1885 and 1886 was so successful and dignified that it will long be remembered by the people with gratitude and pride as a model of good govern- ment. His state papers and public speeches de- serve to rank as classics. For elegant expression, polished style and fitness for the occasion, his
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address accepting in behalf of the state the statue of Daniel Webster has never been excelled. His various proclamations, though without formalism of dogmatism, were religious in tone and moral in sentiment, and were expressed in language which is poetry itself. A well-known writer has said : " Ilis early culture, his poetic taste, his experience of life, the meditations of his mature years, have enabled him to give to New Hampshire a series of official utterances of surprising appropriateness, beauty, and grace."
Governor Currier is not only a distinguished classical scholar, but is learned in the literature and proficient in many of the languages of modern Europe. His translations are models of aeeuraey and beauty of expression. His pure English serves to express the finest thoughts of the most famous writers. Few living Americans, who have won eminent sueeess in publie life, possess such discriminating literary taste and talent as Governor Currier. His scientifie studies, his researches into the history of aneient religions and modern theol- ogy, and the solution of many of the deep problems of life, have led him to abandon nearly all the mystieal teachings which have perplexed humanity and shut the light of truth from human eompre- hension. Yet his faith in a Supreme Being, who "is all in all," grows brighter as the years fade. This is illustrated by the following lines from one of his poems :
Eternal in God has the universe stood : Eternal the stars and the sun ; And the boundless regions of light and of space Are filled by the Infinite One.
Eternal in him are the fountains of love ; Nor has aught that exists e'er begun ; Eternal is life, eternal is love ; Eternal the Infinite One.
Mr. Currier has expressed his idea of the presence of the Eternal so beautifully in one of his later poems, that it is here reproduced to illus- trate his poetie genius and religious feelings.
THE ETERNAL ONE.
O tell me, man of sacred lore, Where dwells the Being you adore ?
And where, O man of thought profound, Where can the Eternal One be found ? Throughout the realms of boundless space We seek in vain His dwelling place.
Ile dwells where'er the -beams of light Have pierced the primal gloom of night ; Beyond the planet's feeble ray ; Beyond the comet's devious way ; Where'er amid the realms afar Shines light of sun or twinkling star. Above, below, and all around Th' encircling arms of God are found. Where'er the pulse of life may beat His forming hand and power we meet. While every living germ of earth That sinks in death or springs to birth Is but a part of that great whole Whose life is God, and God the soul. From plant to man, below, above, The power divine still throbs in love.
He is the life that glows and warms In tiniest mote of living forms, Which quick'ning nature brings to birth, To float in air or sink in earth. And every shrub, and plant, and flower, That lives an age or blooms an hour, Has just as much of God within As human life or seraphim ; For all that bloom and all that shine Are only forms of life divine. And every ray that streaks the east, And every beam that paints the west, With every trembling gleam of light, With every gloom that shades the night, Are but the trailing robes divine Of one whose garments ever shine.
The human soul may bend in love And seek for blessings from above, As well in busy haunts of men, In forest gloom, in silent glen, As in the altar's solemn shade, Beneath the domes that men have made ; As well may seek a Father's love, And ask assistance from above, Amid the ocean's solemn roar, Or on its barren waste of shore, As in some distant promised land, Where sacred fanes and temples stand. The soul that beats in sweet attune Finds in himself the Eternal One ; Nor needs to seek for other shrine Than God's great temples all divine.
INSCRIPTIONS IN THE HILL GRAVEYARD, LONDONDERRY.
A RECENT visit to this ancient burial ground resulted in deciphering the inscriptions on all the monuments now remaining visible, and for the benefit of posterity an alphabetical arrangement of the names of the dead is hercwith presented, with the dates of deceasc and ages so far as given. Many more stoncs without inscriptions are firmly fixed at the heads of graves whose inmates arc only to be conjectured by the surround- ing memorials. Several hundred bodies have been interred, a small portion of these have been re- moved to other places of burial, and probably the removal of morc is anticipated, as the memory of the worthy dead is being revived in more conspic- uous and abiding entablatures by the present gen- eration.
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