USA > Vermont > Windham County > Brattleboro > Brattleboro, Windham County, Vermont; early history, with biographical sketches of some of its citizens > Part 19
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" Among the early settlers of Guilford, since 1796 was Hon. Royall Tyler, Hon. James Elliot, Hon. Micah Townshend, Hon. John Noyes, Hon. Henry Seymour, and others of lesser note, who were iden- tified with the history of the State, but who have since removed from the town."
After Epaphro Seymour was established in business in 1802, Henry Seymour re- moved to Pompey, Onondaga Co., N. Y., and engaged largely in trade, accumulating a handsome property. Subsequently, in 1819, he removed to Utica, N. Y., and was appointed one of the canal commis- sioners of that State, and while supervising the construction of the canal, he acquired a large fortune by successful investments in real estate.
Epaphro continued in mercantile busi- ness in Guilford until 1814, when he re- moved to Brattleboro, and was associated with Geo. F. Atherton in mercantile busi- ness. He continued in trade in Brattleboro some three or four years, after which he resided alternately at Guilford and Brat- tleboro. He spent the winter of 1820 at Middlebury, Vt. He was regarded as a
discreet business man of most excellent judgment, and could readily and correctly estimate the value of all kinds of property that passed under his observation, and while sojourning in Brattleboro, Guilford, or elsewhere, he was constantly investing his money in a great variety of enter- prises, which uniformly proved produc- tive.
In the fall of 1821, the Legislature of Vermont chartered a bank at Brattleboro, which was organized the following year, and Mr. Seymour was chosen cashier thereof by the directors in March, 1822, and continued to hold the office until Jan. 1, 1837, when he was elected president of the bank to fill the vacancy made by the resignation of John Holbrook. Mr. Sey- mour continued to hold the office and faithfully discharge the duties thereof until his death, June 10, 1854. By reason of his early and careful training, and his long experience in mercantile business, he was exceedingly practical in his method, and had acquired a perfect familiarity with all the details and complications of the most intricate business transactions, and was enabled to conduct the business of the bank profitably and successfully during the time of his official connection there- with, either as cashier or president. He settled the estate of Hon. Jonathan Hunt, as executor, without excuting bonds for the faithful discharge of the trust which the testator had reposed in his integrity and fidelity, and the estate inventoried at a sum exceeding $150,000. During the year 1837 and from 1837 to 1840, inclusive, he was associated with his nephew, Horatio Seymour, of Utica, N. Y., and O. S. Sey- mour, of Litchfield, Conn., in settling the estate of his brother, Henry Seymour, who died at Utica, N. Y. The estate was very large and widely scattered, exceeding $250,000 in amount. He was greatly re- spected for his honesty and integrity and unflinching fidelity in the discharge of his fiduciary engagements. While connected with the bank his time and energies were almost exclusively devoted to the mainte- nance of its reputation for soundness and solvency. His example, method and man- ner of conducting the business of the bank has since been strictly followed by his suc- cessors, and, at this day, it is regarded as one of the soundest in the State. He was
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a great admirer of a fine horse, and mani- fested a deep interest in the improvement of the breed of horses in Brattleboro and vicinity. At his death he was keeping in his stables eight brood mares with colts, that were sired by the celebrated Gifford Morgan, which was his favorite horse. Some of its descendants are now owned in Windham county, and old horse fanciers readily detect in them the symmetry and prominent characteristics of the sire which was always regarded as the noblest horse in New England, forty years ago.
Mr. Seymour was eminently practical in all his views and opinions, and of most excellent judgment. The public, particu- larly those who were about to engage in new enterprises, reposing great confi- dence in his superior financial ability, uni- formly consulted him in relation to their proposed investments and were always controlled by his opinions. His advice was always eagerly sought and adopted. He constantly warned all who were in- clined to engage in speculations against the folly and danger which was so alluring to a man with a greed for wealth, and so dangerous to him when the money of others is under his control. He begged of his friends to make no investments but those that were perfectly legitimate and promised a safe return.
The community reposed the most im- plicit confidence in his integrity. Before the adoption of savings banks and trust companies in this State, large sums of money were entrusted to his care and keep- ing, and in many cases with a simple minute noting the amount, yet for tlie period of more than forty years not a whisper was ever breathed against his fidelity in the discharge of any fiduciary engagement he had assumed. He was a generous-hearted man to the poor and un- fortunate, and kindly aided young men who were struggling against adversity and poverty to obtain an education and qualify themselves for professional pursuits. He married Miss Mary Root, an estimable young lady, sister of Mrs. Judge Whitney, of Brattleboro. He had but one child, a boy, who died Nov. 23, 1830, aged two years and six months.
CHAS. K. FIELD.
CAPT. SAMUEL ROOT.
Samuel Root was the son of Moses Root ; born at Montague, Mass., Oct., 9, 1788; came to Brattleboro when he was about 20 years of age, and worked for Samuel Dick- enson and learned of him the trade of a blacksmith. After laboring for Dickenson a few years and completing his engage- ment, he bought of him his shop, tools and good will and commenced business for himself.
He married Catherine Sargeant, Feb. 6, 1817, by whom he had five children, only two of whom survived him-Frances E. and Catherine. Frances E. married Geo. C. Lawrence, who is still living. Catherine married Samuel H. Price, who enlisted in the Union army and died in the services of his country in 1863.
Frances E. Lawrence left three children -Elizabeth, Richard and Henry R. Eliza- beth and Richard died some years ago, and Henry R. is still living. Catherine had two sons by her husband, Mr. Price, Fran- cis and Edward, who reside with their mother in Chicago, and are engaged in trade.
Capt. Root was a man of great industry, of an indomitable will and always exer- cised the most rigid economy. Forty years ago New England and New York were chartering banks by the score, and the prudent captain invested liis surplus gains and accumulations in bank shares, and liis investments uniformly proved productive and added largely to his wealth. At the time of his death he owned a large amount of stock in some 10 or 15 banks in New England and New York.
His stern unflinching honesty and prac- tical good sense rendered him exceedingly popular with his neighbors and townsmen, and he was annually elected to responsible offices in town, the duties of which he dis- charged with great fidelity. He represented the town in the General Assembly of the State; was oftentimes chosen one of the selectmen of the town, and was for many years trustee and keeper of the surplus money, a large fund sequestered and set apart for the support and maintenance of common schools in town. The fund was large and great care was required in ob- taining ample security for loans that were made of portions of the same. He was for
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a long time a director in the old bank, and was elected president thereof after the death of Mr. Seymour, in 1854, and con- tinued to hold the office until his own death in March, 1869.
For the last fifty years of his life he had filled the most important municipal offices in town. As a citizen, he discharged all his duties faithfully, and distinguished himself by the zeal and energy with which he entered into all the enterprises which were calculated to promote the growth and prosperity of the town. Faithful to all with whom he had dealings, honorable and upright to all employees, and in all his relations, social or financial, his conduct was characterized by the utmost frankness and sincerity. He followed closely the policy adopted by his distinguished pre- decessor, Mr. Seymour, in the manage- ment of the bank. He never invested his money in wild speculations, and while president of the bank he uniformly declined loaning any of its funds to its officers, or to those who applied for loans for mere speculative purposes. He condemned the speculative mania which prevailed during his official connection with the bank, and which was urged as a partial justification of various and illegitimate investments, such as cutting up farms into house lots, running up prices beyond reason, and ex- pecting every purchase to yield a profit. The world regarded this as legitimate and justified by the business necessities of the country. Not so Capt. Root. He resisted the policy and denounced it as vain and delusive, and flatly refused to approve any loans for such false and delusive purposes. Time has exposed the folly of the specula- tive mania which prevailed during the currency inflation, and fully justified Captain Root in denouncing it as a sham and a blunder. He died March 15, 1869, sincerely mourned and regretted by a large circle of relatives and friends.
CHAS. K. FIELD.
FREDERICK HOLBROOK.
Ex-Governor Frederick Holbrook was born Feb. 15, 1814. He was the youngest of ten children, who constituted the family of Deacon John Holbrook, and is now the only representative here of this family, which formerly occupied a large sphere of
usefulness and effectually exercised a crea- tive power in the forming period of the East village of Brattleboro. The head of this family was so identified with the building up of this place, that it is found impossible to give a history of the same without the association of his name with our account of the causes of the existence and early progress of this village.
The mother of Gov. Holbrook, a lady of genuine christian graces and strength of character, was the daughter of Hon. Luke Knowlton, of Newfane. She moulded to a forming degree the young life of the future governor, who manifested on the very threshold of manhood a love for theoretical and practical agriculture. There was an increasing neglect of this important avocation, upon which our na- tional greatness depends, which so aroused the subject of our sketch that he brought all the powers of his mind to bear upon the subject. His early culture, observing qualities and travels in Europe, enabled him to furnish valuable and interesting articles on the subject of agriculture for the leading journals of the science in the United States; they possessed a charm to a class of readers heretofore indifferent to such matters, and were extensively copied by the local press through the country.
Mr. Holbrook was wary and cautious in advancing new theories. All positions he assumed were thoroughly examined and considered before being submitted to the public. The reflective department of his mental organism and love for truth being largely predominant in his nature, he avoided hasty conclusions; therefore, he seldom, if ever, had occasion to alter or retract any statements he had committed to the hands of the printer. Being a prac- tical as well as a theoretical agriculturalist, his theories were well tested before publi- cation. It does not require superior discrimination to discover in his writings a patriotic animus, a truthfulness and honesty of purpose. He loved to practice as well as to preach, and gentlemen farm- ers, so-called, were often surprised to find the man, who could so effectually and gracefully wield the pen, holding the plough or reaping his fields.
In 1847, while thus busy with his farm, he was chosen Register of Probate for the
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district of Marlboro, and in 1850 he was elected president of our State Agricultural Society, and held that office eight years. In 1849-'50, his fellow-citizens sent him as Senator from Windham county to the State Legislature, and during his term of office, as chairman of a special committee on agriculture, he projected a petition to Congress for the establishment of a na- tional " Bureau of Agriculture." During the next legislative session at Washington the President of the United States com- mended the measure proposed, and soon our national department of agriculture be- came a reality.
His foreign tour, to which brief allusion is made in the foregoing. was in early life, soon after leaving his studies and a short time before steamship navigation of the Atlantic. Over fifty days confinement in a sailing vessel, on his return home, beat- ing against adverse winds, did not give him a rose-colored view of a life on the ocean wave. He suggested to the captain of the ship the employment of steam power in crossing the ocean, but, with a wise shake of the head, the veteran mari- ner declared the thing impossible.
In this brief presentation of incidents in the life of Mr. Holbrook may be found some of the causes of his elevation to the chair of State in 1861. During his term of office was the darkest period of our national existence. Upon no governor of this State ever rested so grave responsi- bilities, or of whom was required so ardu- ous, unremitting labors as devolved upon Governor Holbrook and his able cabinet. When gloomy croakers and defenders of rebellion were making every possible effort to weaken the already bleeding hands sus- taining our old national ensign, the utter- ances of Vermont, through lier executive, had no uncertain sound to the ear of Lincoln or to his foes. Over 30,000 Ver- mont soldiers, for the Union army, con- firmed those utterances and formed a living wall of steel in protection of that "Star Spangled Banner," which, in the long ago, had so often waved successful defiance to the enemies of liberty, and be- came a worshiped emblem of our nation's glory. The proclamations of our gov- ernor, in that period of peril, were resolute, calm and hopeful, with no sign of flinch- ing or cessation of heavy blows at the
active enemies of our government, so long as they continued such. Official declara- tions of this character from the northern frontier at that time, tended in no small degree to dispel the gloom oft-times sur- rounding the President and his cabinet. While life was in the' extremities of the nation. there was reasonable hope of soundness in the body of the same. The clear light of patriotism, from the distant heights of freedom, pierced through the dark cloud of thieves, spies and assassins infesting the home of Lincoln from the beginning of the rebellion to its close.
Before assuming, and since leaving the chair of State, Mr. Holbrook has declined several invitations to official position, in- cluding appointments from the general government. He has never been an office seeker, but when induced to accept of a position, or to commence the accomplish- ment of any duty, however humble, his consideration, first and last, has been for thoroughness and such action as, in his judgment, would secure the best results.
As chairman of the board of trustees of the Vermont Asylum, he has ever been awake to the best good of the patients and the general welfare of that institution. As a director of the agricultural depart- ment, for which he is eminently qualified, his position would be difficult to fill.
In confirmation of some statements in in the foregoing sketch of Gov. Holbrook, we give the following extract from his message in the dark hours of 1862:
[ Extract from a Vermont paper]. .
" We should gratefully remember the pa- triotic devotion manifested by those who, unable to bear arms and endure the hard- ships and fatigues of the soldier, have no- bly aided and encouraged others to do so, contributing liberally of their means to provide for the brave volunteers. The last- ing thanks of every patriot are due to the women of Vermont, for so freely giving up their husbands, brothers and sons for the struggle, and their sympathy and zeal in furnishing, in such variety and abundance, the articles of their handiwork, and the delicacies indispensable to the comfort of the camps and hospitals, and to the alle- viation of the sufferings of sick and wounded soldiers, lonely and far from kindred and home.
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Thus will it ever be with Vermont to the end of the war; she will never falter nor look back, but will press forward, until, if need be, her last dollar is expended, and her last son falls upholding in his dying grasp 'the flag of our Union,' and with his latest breath ejaculating a benediction upon his country."
A large portion of the document is necessarily devoted to the finances of the State. He then reviews the work of rais- ing and equipping the several regiments, and with brief allusions to the several State institutions, to which he has been able to give but little attention, owing to the pressure of other duties. He thus con- cludes :
" It is an occasion for renewed congrat- ulation that the people of Vermont have again shown their devotion to the cause of the Union, by laying aside, almost unani- mously, all considerations of a partisan character, and uniting in earnest support of the National Government, which is charged with the high duty of defending and maintaining that sacred cause. The position of Vermont in this great life struggle of the nation, can neither be ques- tioned nor misunderstood. The blood of her sons has reddened many battle-fields, and their valor and endurance have vindicated her historical renown. Her people admit no thought of concession to, or compromise with, the causeless and wicked rebellion now striking at the vitals of the nation, and their determination is fixed to endure and fight, and sacrifice, till the govern- ment, established by the wisdom, the patriotism, and the blood of our fathers, is restored in its beneficent and rightful sway over every portion of the Union.
"The struggle in which the nation is engaged is clearly one of life or death. Even though the scenes of blood and the night of calamity through which we may be called to pass, shall shake the land to its foundations and try us to the utmost, yet, trusting in the God of our fathers, we will not. doubt that life is to be the result, and that the nation is to be purified by its trials and established and exalted beyond the expectations of its founders. Ou fathers found a great evil, which they de- plored, but could not separate from the good. Current events are tending to pro- duce that separation, by uprooting the
evil. The rebellion, if persisted in, may be the means, under Providence, of anni- hilating the institution of slavery, which all acknowledge to have been its cause. The territory of the United States must be preserved in its integrity.
"Neither foreign power nor domestic insurrection can be allowed to establish a rival government within .any portion of that territory, and, therefore, all means justified by the ultimate law of self-preser- vation and compatible with Christian civ- ilization, must be applied to the permanent suppression of the present rebellion. The recent Proclamation of Emancipation by the President of the United States, is a logical result of the slaveholders' rebellion, and as such it is accepted, and will be sus- tained by all loyal men. It is a 'military necessity,' and has the recommendation to our people of according with both justice and humanity.
Gentlemen of the Senate and House of Representatives :
"Grave and weighty responsibilities rest upon us in this great crisis. Let us show ourselves equal to our duties. Whatever we have to do, let us do it with one heart and one mind. However humble, we are a part of the American Union, and have a vital interest in its preservation. It is a Union consecrated to Freedom, and it falls to our lot and that of our generation to prove the ability of freemen to defend and ' preserve our birthright. Our institutions are passing through a baptism of blood. They must and will be maintained at what- ever sacrifice; and in the momentous issue which is upon us, neither temporary re- verses will discourage, nor partial successes unduly elevate us. Relying upon the in- controvertible justice of our case, the bravery, patriotism and intelligence of the soldiers of the Union, the unconquerable determination, and the spirit of American Liberty actuating the loyal people of the country, we may confidently look forward to and patiently wait the time when our beloved Republic, under the providence of God, shall be re-established in unity and power, and afford a triumphant vindication of the ability of a free people to govern themselves.
FREDERICK HOLBROOK."
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HON. SAMUEL CLARK.
[We are indebted to the Rev. Joseph Chandler, of West Brattleboro, for a copy of this sketch, prepared by him for, and read before, the Vermont Historical So- ciety, at its meeting in this village].
Hon. Samuel Clark, a member of this society, whose death at the age of 84 gives occasion for this notice, was for many years a prominent and highly respectable citizen of Brattleboro. He was born in Lebanon, Conn., in that part of the town which is now Columbia, Feb. 28, 1777. His father was Samuel Clark, of Lebanon, son of Timothy Clark of the same town, whose father, with a Mr. Dewey, pur- chased a tract of land of the Indians, which tract was called, down to a late day, the Clark & Dewey purchase. There is a tradition that the first ancestors of these Clarks in this country came from England in the ship Ann, in the year 1622.
Through his mother, Sarah Cushman, the subject of this notice was a lineal de- scendant, in the seventh generation, of Robert Cushman, who came to Plymouth, Mass., in 1621, and who, though not a clergyman nor even a "Teaching Elder," prepared and delivered a sermon on Wednesday, Dec. 12, the day before he sailed for England. This was the first sermon delivered in New England that was printed. The main facts of his life, with a list of his descendants in this country, are recorded in the volume of " Cushman Genealogy," prepared by Hon. Henry W. Cushman, of Bernardston, Mass., to which volume we are indebted for the main facts of this sketch.
The family of which our deceased friend was the ninth, consisted of seven sons and four daughters. After the death of his brother Eliphas in 1850, who died at Tol- . land, Conn., at the age of 82, he was the sole survivor of the family. Till 18 years of age, he labored on his father's farm in Lebanon. Then, after attending a high school for about four months, he went to Massachusetts, and for about three years was engaged in teaching school and as a clerk in a country store in Bernardston, Greenfield and Leyden. He then removed to Dover, Vt., where he resided for some six years, engaged in mercantile business. Sept. 1, 1800, he married Susan Johnson,
who was born in September, 1778, in El- lington, Conn., daughter of David John- son, of Dover, Vt. In 1804, he removed to Guilford, where he prosecuted liis busi- ness successfully for nine years. In 1813, he went back to Dover, which town, in 1814, he represented in the State Legisla- ture. In 1815, he took up his residence in West Brattleboro, and for about 15 years carried on mercantile business there. In the years 1820-21, and also 1825-26, he was the representative of the town in the Legis- lature. For three years, commencing with 1827, he was a member of the Council of this State. In 1833 he was first assistant judge of the county court for this county. In 1836 he was a delegate from this town to the convention for revising the Consti- tution. While in the Legislature, he was chiefly instrumental in obtaining the char- ter of Brattleboro Bank, of which he was for 20 years following a director. For 13 years he was one of the trustees of the Hospital for the Insane, in this town, and for 35 years was an active member of the Board of Trustees of Brattleboro Academy. ever manifesting a lively interest in the institution by his large contributions for building and other purposes, and by his faithfulness to promote the welfare of the school.
His religious life is supposed to have commenced during the year 1833, at which time, in company with many others, he joined the Congregational Church in West Brattleboro, then under the pastoral care of Rev. Jedediah L. Stark.
He was, in his sphere, a strong man; fitted by nature, and by the wise and dili- gent use of his energies to exert an influ ence in society. Though possessed of strong feelings, his judgment was sound and his opinion was much valued by his neighbors. Prudence and sagacity were marked traits in his character. Another pleasing trait was his readiness to make amends for anything done under the im- pulse of excited feelings, which he was led afterwards to look upon as wrong. Hc was not one of those men, of assumed in- fallibility who make it a point never to take back anything, and never to acknowl- edge themselves mistaken. In many instances where he was called upon to ex- press his opinion and to give his vote, he
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