USA > Vermont > Genealogical and family history of the state of Vermont; a record of the achievements of her people in the making of a commonwealth and the founding of a nation, Vol I > Part 101
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gardner came into definite and practical force in the proper improvement of the highways in the locality. Fraternally he is identified with the Ma- sonic order, affiliating with Washington Lodge No. 3, F. & A. M., in Burlington, and his re- ligious views are in harmony with the tenents of the Congregational church, of which he is a reguiar attendant.
In January, 1856, Mr. Taylor was married to Miss Annie Armstrong, who was born in Mon- treal, and of this union two sons have been born, namely : Linnaeus M., who died at the age of thirty-two years ; and Archibald J., who is a suc- cessful florist of Burlington, Vermont. The latter married Jessie Truman, a descendant of an old Vermont family. Mrs. Archibald Taylor died April 17, 1903, and in the same week expired Grace Miller, who was reared from four to eight- cen years of age by Mr. Taylor and his estimable wife.
WILLIE WOODBURY MARSHALL.
This well known real estate dealer and builder of Hardwick was born November 6, 1867, in Burke, Vermont, a son of the late Woodbury L. Marshall. The last named was a grandson of Antepas Marshall, who served in the revolution- ary army, having a brother in the same service, who was shot down by his side. He was pres- ent at the surrender of Burgoyne at Saratoga. He lived to the age of ninety-four years, having been for more than forty years a Methodist minister. He was a native of Connecticut, and settled in Northumberland, New Hampshire, in 1780. Here his son, Timothy Marshall, was born February 9, 1800. The latter removed about 1854 to Burke, Vermont, where he was a prosperous farmer and highly respected citizen, reaching the age of eighty years. One of his sons, Joshua Noble Mar- shall, enlisted at the age of eighteen years as a soldier in the Mexican war, and died of yellow fever while on the way home after the close of that struggle. Another son, Timothy L., settled in Burke, where he was a farmer and merchant many years, dying in Worcester, Massachusetts, in 1890. There were three daughters, Sarah, Amanda and Lydia W. The first of these mar- ried Elbridge Gaskell, and died in Burke. Amanda died in the same town, while the wife of
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W. W. Marshall
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Hiram Cummings. The last named is the widow of Dr. Carpenter, of Burke, where she resides.
Woodbury L. Marshall, son of Timothy, was born March 16, 1836, in Northumberland, New Hampshire, being seventeen years of age when he came with his parents to Vermont. He se- cured a situation as clerk in a store at Burke, and was afterwards engaged in business as a farmer and dealer in real estate until his death, at the age of fifty years. He died June 1, 1886. He married Laurinda A. Watson, who was born in Burke, Vermont, a daughter of Larnard Watson, and they became the parents of three children, namely : Charlie L., who died at the age of eigh- teen years; Amine E., who died when thirteen years old; and Willie W. The mother is still living, making her home in West Burke. Her father, Larnard Watson, was an extensive far- mer, and owned the fine meadow farm lying just south of West Burke. He was a man of enter- prise and energy, and was one of the stockhold- ers and promoters in opening up Willoughby Lake as a summer resort, a venture that ultimate- ly proved most successful. He was a Republican in politics, and a zealous worker in his party. His wife, whose maiden name was Eunice Rug- gles, was a native of Lyndon, Vermont, belong- ing to one of the early and prominent families of that town.
Larnard Watson and wife were the parents of eight children : Leonard W., a farmer of Sutton ; Laurinda A., Mrs. Marshall; Henry E., a resi- dent of Lyndonville ; Ellen, who died in girlhood ; Abby W., wife of Ira A. Humphrey, residing on the Watson homestead in Burke; Nancie, wife of Frank W. Silsby, a merchant of Lyndonville; Fanny H., widow of John C. Sargent, who died at Burke in 1901; George E., who died in San Francisco, California, in 1895.
Willie W. Marshall was educated in the pub- lic schools of Burke and at Lyndon Academy, af- ter which he traveled as salesman on the road for two years, and was then engaged in mercantile business at West Burke for an equal length of time. Coming then to Hardwick, in 1890, Mr. Marshall bought out the store of D. W. Aiken & Son, who had been in business here for a full half century, and continued at the old stand for six years. Having in the meantime erected, on South Main street, what was then, and is still,
the finest brick block in town, he moved into it, opening up a dry-goods, clothing, boot and shoe store, and conducted it until 1900, when he dis- posed of the entire stock to the present owners, Wiltsie & Taylor, for the neat little sum of twenty thousand dollars, or thereabouts. Mr. Marshall, however, still owns the block, and has much other valuable property, consisting principally of realty and tenement houses. Since taking up his resi- dence in Hardwick he has dealt extensively in real estate, being perhaps the largest individual real estate holder and builder in the village. He has bought several tracts of land, which he has platted, laying out streets and lots, and erected residences, during the last season building seven cottages for sale or rent, and is at present devot- ing his attention to building and selling proper- ties, owning now a dozen cottages, three busi- ness blocks and about twenty acres of land within the corporation. He has just completed a large three-story building with basement, which is to be used for laundry purposes, lodge rooms and a public hall. He is a Republican in politics, and has served as a member of the city council. He is a member of the Knights of Pythias and Mod- ern Woodmen of America.
January 15, 1890, Mr. Marshall was married to Della M., eldest daughter of James G. and Malvina E. (Coochier) Lunge, of Burke. James Gilbert Lunge is a son of Francis and Julia Lunge and was born April 6, 1840, in Glover, Vermont. His boyhood was spent on the farm and differed very little from the usual life of boys of that day. In the spring of 1862 he enlisted as a soldier, serving in the Ninth and Fifteenth Regiments, Vermont Volunteers, until the close of the Civil war. June 1, 1862, he was wounded in the right side by a piece of shell in the battle of Seven Pines : and but for the timely help of a comrade, who risked his life to draw him in the shelter of a large tree, he would undoubtedly have lost his life. With the exception of six weeks, during which this wound confined him to the hospital. he was in active service until his discharge, in 1865. Four of his brothers were also soldiers in the Civil war, Carlos, who was killed in battle; Luke, who was taken prisoner and died a few days after his release; Joseph, who died in Al- bany, New York, in 1867; and Isaac, who was also a prisoner and is now a prosperous farmer in
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Albany, Vermont. In December, 1867, James G. Lunge bought the farm at Burke Green on which he now resides. He is a pensioner and a member of D. Rattery Post, Grand Army of the Republic, of West Burke.
Mrs. Marshall was born June 5, 1872, and be- gan teaching school at the age of fourteen years, continuing that worthy pursuit during ten terms. The only child of Mr. and Mrs. Marshall, Leah A., died in 1897, at the age of fourteen months.
THE THOMPSON FAMILY.
The Thompson family is one of the oldest in New England, tracing its ancestry back to the year 1299, and has, for sterling worth and high ideals, won for itself an enviable reputation.
CHARLES F. THOMPSON.
Among its members have been prominent land- owners, army officials, ministers and prosperous business men. Its present representative, Charles
F. Thompson, secretary and treasurer of the Brattleboro Gas & Electric Light Company, is one of the most enterprising and public-spirited mnen of his town. Many a hard pressed business man has in years past been grateful for the kind assistance rendered him by Mr. Thompson, and charitable institutions desiring aid always look to him with the most confident assurance of support in their undertakings.
The history of this family in America starts out with a charming little romance, which has been carefully preserved among the records of the family. John Thompson, the first of his line to settle in America and a young man of energy, came here from London in the good ship Eliza- beth and Ann, landing on the 22d of October, 1635. After a prospecting tour through the new settlements with a view of selecting a suitable location for a permanent residence, he returned to England. Traveling on foot from the ship to his inland home, he fell in at early morn with a farmer, who, learning that the stranger was from America, insisted on his remaining for breakfast. In answer to inquiries concerning the new country Mr. Thompson described it as full of savage beasts and savage men, but a region where one might worship God after the dictates of his own conscience. "Sayest thou it; would God I were there," exclaimed Mirabel, one of the three daughters of the farmer. "Could you for the sake of Christ endure the terrors and trials of that land?" asked Mr. Thompson. "Yea, gladly, by God's help," she answered. This girl, with others, not long before had her feet put into the stocks for attending a conventicle, or Puritan meeting. Before John Thompson returned to New England she was his wife. They took up their permanent residence at Stratford, Connecti- cut, and were among the first settlers of that place. Here he became the owner of large tracts of land, and during his lifetime acquired consider- able wealth. He was a man of influence and highly respected in his community.
Ambrose Thompson, the fifth child of John Thompson, resided in Stratford for many years. He lived a long and useful life, dying in 1742, at the advanced age of ninety. During his young manhood he married Sarah Wells, of Stratford, and they had seven children. John Thompson, the eldest son of Ambrose, was born in 1680,
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and was also a resident of Stratford, where, upon reaching manhood, he became a person of con- siderable influence. In 1705, when about twenty- five years of age, he married Ruth Curtis, and they had several children. A religious man, of great integrity, he served as deacon of the church in his place for many years. John, a son of John and Ruth Thompson, married Mehitable Booth in 1739, and they became the parents of a number of children, among the number being Lieutenant William Thompson, who became a popular man in his community and one of much force of char- acter. When the Revolutionary war broke out he enlisted, serving therein very creditably for some time. His bravery and daring, however, cost him his life, for during the Danbury fight, while pur- suing the retreating British forces, he was killed at Ridgefield in April, 1777. During his young manhood he married Mehitable Ufford, and they had five children, John, William, Isaac, Joseph and Mary. Rev. Joseph, the fourth child of Lieutenant William and Mehitable Thompson and the grandfather of Charles F., the leading charac- ter of this sketch, resided at Stratford, the horne of many of his ancestors. Upon reaching man- hood he became a Congregational minister and officiated as such in Stratford for many years. He lived to a great old age, preaching a public sermon at Stratford on the one hundredth anni- versary of his birth, and in that place he died shortly after. On the 6th of June, 1792, he mar- ried Helen Curtis, a daughter of Silas Curtis, and they had three children : Isaac; Mary Ann, who married Sidney Judson Beardsley; and Charles.
Rev. Charles Thompson, the father of Charles F., and a leading Congregational minister of his time, was a man of much religious zeal and a credit to his profession. Born in Stratford in July, 1796, he spent his early life in that place. After securing a thorough education he was or- dained to preach in the Congregational church, and for some years he nobly put his energies and talents to use in the home missionary field, enter- ing upon this line of work in the neglected dis- tricts of Pennsylvania. In 1828 he gave up his missionary work and located as pastor of the Congregational church at Humphreyville, now Seymour, Connecticut, whence he removed five years later to Salem, that state, to accept the
charge of the congregation at that place, there continuing in the service of the Master until his death, in February, 1855. He was a most zealous and successful minister of the gospel, and it was during his pastorate and largely through his instrumentality that the edifice in which the congregation now worship at Salem was erected. In the prime of his manhood he married Hannah Miner, who was born in New London, Connecti- cut, in 1796. She, too, was a member of an old and prominent family, their ancestry dating back to 1339, in which year one of its representatives, with one hundred men, offered his services to the king, who at once made him a knight and changed his name from Bullen to Miner. Mrs. Thompson proved to her husband a faithful helpmate, and her death occurred in 1879, when in her eighty- fourth year. Four of their children grew to years of maturity: Hannah Miner, who died at about twenty; Charles F., who is mentioned below ; Helen, who died at about sixteen; and William Joseph, who is an extensive ranchman in the state of Washington.
Charles Frederick Thompson secured his early education in the public schools and under private tutors. Gifted with keen intellectual powers, he progressed rapidly and at an early age was en- abled to enter the Easthampton Seminary, where he finished his schooling. So ambitious was he that in 1846, when in his sixteenth year, he secured a position with Williston & Tyler, general merchants of Brattleboro, Vermont, where he spent many years of his life, acquiring a knowl- edge of business of much value to him in later enterprises. In 1860 he purchased Mr. Willis- ton's interest in the firm, which for many years was known as Tyler & Thompson and finally as C. F. Thompson & Company, our subject con- tinuing in the conduct of this establishment for a period of forty-six years, or until 1892. Dur- ing this time, however, he invested considerable capital in the Brattleboro Gas & Electric Light Company and became largely interested in its management. Finding in the course of time that his health was unable to bear the strain of too many lines of business he sold out his interest in the hardware store in 1892 and gave his entire attention to his other enterprises. He was made both secretary and treasurer of the Gas & Elec- tric Light Company, and has very efficiently
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filled those positions ever since. He served for a number of years as a member of the invest- ing committee of the Vermont Savings Bank, exercising wisdom and carefulness, much to the benefit of that institution. When the question of constructing the Brattleboro and Whitehall Rail- road was agitated, he was one of its chief pro- moters and became largely instrumental in the organization of the company. He was the first president of the completed road, a position which he has ever since filled.
On the 15th of May, 1855, Mr. Thompson
CHARLES H. THOMPSON.
married Elizabeth Cune, a highly cultured woman and a daughter of Charles Cune. By this mar- riage there have been born four children : Helen Elizabeth, a graduate of Vassar College, who is now and has been for some time connected with the Burnham Classical School of Northampton, Massachusetts; Charles H., who is now teller in the Vermont National Bank; and two children, Mary F., and Frederick M., deceased. Mr.
Thompson has been exceedingly generous with his exceptional business talents, often using them to assist struggling local enterprises. As a lead- ing member of the Central Congregational church he has served as its deacon for over thirty-five years, and has been active in Sunday-school work for over fifty years, several times serving as superintendent. All charitable and missionary organizations he has helped to further, and has served for many years as director of the Vermont Domestic Missionary Society, and as a corporate member of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, since 1869. An enthusiastic man, zealous in all good works and possessed of a magnetic personality, he has won for himself a large circle of strong and lasting friends in his town, county and statc.
FREDERICK H. HORSFORD.
As a native son of Chittendon county and a representative of one of its earliest and most hon- orcd pioncer families, Mr. Horsford is eminently worthy of consideration in this work, while his ancestral history is one of interesting order, de- noting that in both the paternal and maternal lines he is descended from valiant patriots who served with signal honor as soldiers in the Con- tinental line during the war of the Revolution, and thus indicating that both families have long been identified with the annals of the great re- public which owes its establishment to this same sanguinary conflict. In studying the clean-cut, distinct characters of those who precede him in the genealogical lines, interpretation follows facts in a diametrical way, and there is small use for puzzling or indirection. The respective characters were moulded through struggle and were the positive expressions of strong natures. In the specific case of our subject, such is his personal honor and integrity of character and such is his standing as one of the progressive and influential farmers and nurserymen of his native town that he has well upheld the honor of the family name and is a scion worthy to be accorded individual mention in any record touching the genealogical history.
Frederick Hinsdale Horsford was born in Charlotte, Chittenden county, Vermont, on the 2Ist of July, 1855, and has here passed his en-
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tire life, as did also his honored father, Myron H. Horsford, who was born in this town on the 28th of October, 1821, a son of Orrin Horsford, who was likewise born in Charlotte. The last mentioned was a son of the original representative . of the family in this country-Daniel Horsford, who was one of the first settlers in the town and who became one of its most prominent and influential citizens in the pioneer days. He was born in Canaan, Connecticut, October 13, 1748, and married Hannah Day, of Colchester, Connec- ticutt, November 9, 1780. She died April 26, 1816, and for his second wife he chose Lucy Austin. He died August 2, 1835. Mr. Horsford was an able surveyor and it is a matter of record that many of the original surveys of Charlotte were made by him. The intrinsic loyalty and patriot- ism of his nature found notable exemplification at the time when the heroic colonists determined to throw off the yoke of oppression. When the war of the Revolution was precipitated he en- listed as a soldier in the Continental army, and that his military career was one of signal honor is evident when we revert to the fact that in recognition thereof he received a pension, the same being conferred by special act of Congress. He developed an excellent farm in Charlotte and here passed the remainder of his life, continuing to give more or less attention to his profession of surveyor for many years and passing away at the age of eighty-six years. His son Orrin, who was born January 30, 1791, was reared on the homestead farm, and his entire life was passed in Charlotte, being devoted to agricultural pur- suits, in which he attained a due measure of suc- cess, while, like his father, he was prominently concerned in public affairs of a local nature and was one of the honored and influential citizens of his day, having been for a number of years one of the valued members of the board of se- lectmen and having held other local offices. He lived to the age of seventy-seven years. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Cynthia Hinsdale, was born in Hinesburg, this county, a member of one of its sterling pioneer families, and they became the parents of two children, Myron H. and Delia L., the latter being now the wife of Henry F. Moore and resides in Aurora, New York. Cynthia (Hinsdale) Horsford
died at the age of seventy-seven years, having been a devoted member of the Congregational church, while her husband was a Baptist.
Myron H. Horsford was reared on the an- cestral homestead in Charlotte, attending the local schools in his boyhood and supplementing this training by a course of study in the acade- mies at Hinesburg and Ferrisburg. He was one of the substantial and influential farmers of his native town until he was called from the scene of life's labors, in 1890, at the age of sixty- nine years. In the year 1853 was solemnized his mariage to Miss Sarah A. Stearns, who was born in Beekmantown, Clinton county, New York, on the 22d of October, 1829, the daughter of Calvin Stearns, whose father was John Stearns, born at Harvard, Massachusetts, September 7, 1764. He enlisted for service in the war of the Revolution at Rockingham, Vermont, in the spring of 1781, under Captain Green and Colonel Wait and served seven months. In recognition for his services therein he was allowed a pension, for which he applied July 25, 1832. Myron H. and Sarah A. Horsford became the parents of one son and four daughters, the subject of this sketch being the eldest. The daughters are Marion, who is a graduate of the University of Vermont and now a teacher in Williamston, Vermont; Kate, who is the wife of Marshall D. Smith, of Northfield, Vermont ; Jane F. ("Daisy"), who is the wife of William H. Trowbridge, of Waterbury, this state ; and Genevieve, who remains with her mother at the old homestead, which is located in the east- ern part of the town and which has been in the the possession of the family for four generations!
On the homestead farm Frederick H. Hors- ford grew up under most beneficient influences, early beginning to contribute his quota in carry- ing on the work of the farm, and attending school in the vicinity of his home. He became interested in the study of botany, along which line he pushed his original investigation, experiments and study with much zeal. Finally, under Profesor C. G. Pringle, of Charlotte, he began to thoroughly classify the specimens analyzed and to prepare a valuable herbarium, which he eventually sold to the University of Indiana. His study of plant growth and his particular predilection and love for this work naturally led him into a line of
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enterprise identified therewith, and in 1889 he es- tablished himself in the nursery business in Southwick, Masachusetts, in company with Ed- ward Gillett, and while there he entered into an engagement with the officials in charge of the Missouri Botanical Gardens at St. Louis, where he remained for two summers, doing work in the development and improvement of the Wild Gar- dens. He then, in 1892, returned to Charlotte, and in looking about for an eligible location for the establishment of a nursery business, he finally selected his present place, known as a part of the L. D. Stone farm, and comprising one hundred acres. He effected the purchase of the property and has here developed a good nursery and mail order business, having constantly made his busi- ness a matter of technical study and experiment and having made such improvements upon his farm as were demanded by the business. In 1901 he erected his greenhouse and his office building, and ten acres of his farm are now devoted to horticulture, while in the carrying on of the work he gives employment to a superintendent and a corps of nine assistants. He not only controls a good retail trade, but makes a specialty of the shipment of white pine seed into various sec- tions of the Union and also to foreign countries. In 1900 he shipped six tons to Europe, implying nine thousand bushels of cones, and in this line he transacts a lucrative and important business. Mr. Horsford also has charge of both - the old homestead farms, so that he has under his direct supervision five hundred and seventy-five acres of land. While he takes a proper interest in pub- lic affairs he has never been an aspirant for public office and in the matter of politics he maintains an independent attitude, supporting such men and measures as meet the approval of his judg- ment, without reference to strict partisan lines.
On the 12th of May, 1886, Mr. Horsford was united in marriage to Miss Jane E. Stone, who was born on the farm where they now reside, being a daughter of Luther D. Stone, a represen- tative of one of the prominent old families of this county. Mr. Stone married Phoebe R. Keese, and of their six children four are living, namely : Josephine, the widow of Charles Wooster ; Ruth, the widow of Henry Harrison, and a resident of LaGrange, Illinois; Jane E., the wife of Freder- ick H. Horsford; and Belle, the wife of Dr. Will-
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