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 II, Part 36

Author: Carleton, Hiram, 1838- ed
Publication date: 1903
Publisher: New York, Chicago, The Lewis Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 1044

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 II > Part 36

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ing in various large cities. In 1848 he partici- pated in the revolution for freedom and liberty. and after the struggle was over he left Germany in order to escape persecution, and, accompanied by his wife, whom he had just married, set sail on an American vessel for this country. They were thirteen weeks crossing the Atlantic, and landed in New York city January 29, 1849. They resided there until October 2, 1850, when he re- moved to Brattleboro, Vermont, and followed his trade as a journeyman to the year 1857. He made the figure of goddess of liberty which sur- mounts the state house at Montpelier, Vermont, for which he received five hundred and fifty dol- lars; the figure is made of wood, fourteen feet high, six and a half feet across the shoulders and weighs nine hundred and ninety-five pounds. In 1858 Mr. Retting established a furniture busi- ness on his own account in Brattleboro, which he continued until 1880, when failing health com- pelled him to retire. In the legitimate channels of trade John J. Retting won the success which always crowns well directed labor, sound judg- ment and untiring perserverance, and all with whom he has had business dealings repose the highest confidence in him. He commanded a good trade and had for his patrons many of the best people of the city, and as a result of his careful business methods he was able to retire after acquiring much valuable real estate in the locality. He purchased six squares on which he erected handsome residences and afterward dis- posed of them, and in this manner he realized a goodly profit. His property is, reputed to be worth forty-two thousand dollars. Mr. Retting is prominently affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, being the oldest past grand patriarch in the state of Vermont; he is also a past grand master of the Grand Lodge in the state of Vermont. In his religious beliefs he is a member of the Congregational church of Brattleboro, Vermont.

Mr. Retting was united in marriage to Miss Louisa M. Kline, and the following named chil- dren were born to them: Leopold Retting, born December 17, 1849, was only eight months old when his parents removed to Vermont, where, after acquiring an education in the public schools, he learned the furniture trade and succeeded his

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father in the business. He is a prominent member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, having joined Wantastiquiet Lodge, No. 5, in 1871, of which he has been master ; he was also grand master in 1892 of the Grand Lodge of the state of Vermont, grand patriarch in 1883, grand rep- resentative to Southern Grand Lodge for the years 1885, 1886 and again in 1890. He is also a prominent Mason, being a member of Columbia Lodge No. 36, a member of the Red Men, Tribe No. 2, and a member of the Protective Grange. He also served as a member of the Fuller Bat- tery, and is a consistent and faithful member of the West Baptist church of Brattleboro, Vermont. He married Miss Elizabeth C. Leonard, daugh- ter of H. O. Leonard, of Walpole, New Hamp- shire; they have one child, Florence L. Retting.

. Charles F., second son of John J. Retting, born in Brattleboro, Vermont, February 13, 1854, was educated in the public schools of his native town, and is now a furniture manufacturer in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he conducts a business of two hundred thousand dollars annu- ally ; his specialty is society room furniture. He is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of the Masonic fraternity, Knights of Pythias and the Elks. He married Miss Mary Sartwell, and their two children are Charles and Louise Retting.

John H., third son of John J. Retting, born in Brattleboro, April 20, 1857, acquired his edu- cation in the schools of his native town, and is now actively connected with the S. S. Smith Company. He married Miss Hattie Rice.

Frederick W., fourth son of John J. Retting, born in Brattleboro, May 12, 1863, after obtain- ing an education in the common schools of his native town, removed to Pittsburg, Kansas, where he secured employment in the auditing department of the Santa Fe Railroad. He mar- ried Miss Lizzie Lange, and their children are Hattie and Freddy.

Minnie, only daughter now living of John J. Retting, born in Brattleboro, April 26, 1859, married W. S. Bishop, a mechanical engineer em- ployed in the building of electrical machinery in New Haven, Connecticut. They have no child- ren.

To Mr. and Mrs. John Retting were also born three other children, who are now deceased.

Mrs. Retting passed away April 12, 1900, after she and her husband had passed a happy married life for more than a half century, fifty-two years.

GEORGE WASHINGTON FULLER.

This gentleman is a member of the distin- gushed family whose name is engraved in the annals of Vermont in the person of Ex-Governor Levi K. Fuller, who was a brother of our honor- ed subject, and to whose sketch the reader is referred for information concerning the Fuller family history. George Washington Fuller was born in Westmoreland, New Hampshire, September II, 1839. He was educated in the public schools of Bellows Falls, Vermont. His life has been that of a mechanical genius. From an early date he discovered qualities of mind which led him into mechanical pursuits. Imme- diately upon leaving school he entered the em- ploy of the Rutland Railroad and repair shops at Bellows Falls, where he passed a period of years, and was then connected with the Vermont Valley Railroad shops as foreman. After a period of years here he became connected with the machinery department of Estey & Green, who are known the world over as the manufacturers of the Estey organ and other well known musi- cal instruments. Mr. Fuller has had continuous service with this company for a period of forty years, and has been in the service of three genera- tions of the Estey family. He has been a most trusted employe, and has been in the closest confidence of his employers during all of that time. When he began with the company he was the twelfth man in their employ, and he has lived to see the day when they employ six hundred men. During that time he has not only had charge of the machinery connected with the Estey factory, but at different times has superintended other departments of the work. For quite a period the Estey company furnished gas to the city of Brattleboro from this private gas plant and Mr. Fuller had charge of the plant during that time. He also makes frequent trips to Owasso, Michi- gan, to look after the machinery in the company's large plant at that place. It thus will appear that Mr. Fuller is an invaluable employe, and as such holds the entire confidence of the Estey company. Fraternally Mr. Fuller is a member

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1 the Independent Order of Old Fellows and it been since 1808 a consistent member of the Methodist Episcopal church. He married, April 20. 1862. Mary /. Phippm, a daughter of Benja om Plippin, and she resided in Westminster. Three interesting children were born to the mar- age, Walter G., an electrician in the employ of the Estey Organ Company and unmarried ; Al- bert M., an engineer on the Wisconsin Central Railway, residing at Minneapolis, Minnesota, is married and has two children, Morton C. and Benjamin H. : Abbey E., the youngest child, mar- ried Francis H. Spencer, an office employe of the Hartford Fire Insurance Company.

Mr. Fuller is a genial, whole-souled gentle- man, whose genius has mastered the situation at all times during his life, and he can look back over the past with the satisfaction of having done his duty in meeting bravely every difficulty that has presented itself, and with the further satis- faction that he has overcome them all. He is a credit to the ranks of the skilled workmen of the Green Mountain state.

LORENZO DOW THAYER.

Lorenzo D. Thayer, a highly esteemed and honored citizen of Brattleboro, Vermont, was born at Dummerston, Vermont, April 19, 1827, a son of Jonathan and Sarah (Dutton) Thayer. Jona- than Thayer, grandfather of Lorenzo D. Thayer. was a prominent resident for a number of years of the town of Dummerston, where he was en- gaged in the occupation of farming. He was a very intelligent man, quiet and unassuming in manner and an active, zealous and efficient worker for the church; where he was familiarly known as Deacon Thayer. His children were: Aden, Lewis, Thad- deus, Luther, Jonathan, Otis, Hannah and Rhoda Thayer, and several of whom died in childhood. Mr. Thayer died in the town of Whitingham, Vermont.

Captain Jonathan Thayer, father of Lorenzo D. Thayer, was born in Dummerston, Vermont, and was indebted to the public schools of that town for his education. He was an expert me- chanic and engaged in various occupations ; he built a number of the mills in that section of the country, and in addition he purchased a small

tract of land, consisting of fifty acres, which he cultivated and improved, meeting with a marked degree of success. Mr. Thayer always gave his support to the men and measures of the Demo- cratic party, and he took a deep interest in local affairs. He served as captain of a Floodwood Company of militia, and was one of the repre- sentative men of the town. He married Miss Sarah Dutton, and the following named children were born to them: Asa Dutton, Stephen Ebe- nezer, John Smith, Otis, Lorenzo Dow, Sarah, Marcia, and Ellen Thayer. Mr. Thayer died at the age of fifty-four years, and his wife died in her seventy-first year.

Lorenzo Dow Thayer, son of Captain Jona- than and Sarah Thayer, acquired his education in the old district school in Dummerston, known as "Slab Hollow," and when he attained the age of fourteen years he learned the blacksmith trade in the shop which was conducted by his brother, Stephen Ebenezer Thayer, as West Townshend. He remained with him until he reached his major- ity, when he removed to Brattleboro and suc- cessfully conducted his trade there for twenty years. He also purchased a farm on the outskirts of the village, consisting of two hundred and fifty acres of highly productive land, and this he cultivated for thirty-two years. Shortly after purchasing his farm he disposed of fifty acres, and in 1902 he sold the remaining two hundred acres to Hooker Winchester, of Wilmington, Vermont. Mr. Thayer then removed into the village, which he had served for many years in numerous positions of trust and honor. In his political affiliations he was an ardent supporter of the principles of the Democratic party.

Mr. Thayer was united in marriage May 28. 185I, to Miss Esther Walker, daughter of Dr. Sewall Walker, of Dummerston, Vermont. Six children were born to them, namely : Sewall Otis, a prominent farmer of Brattleboro, who married Jennie Sartwell, and their children are Ralph, Kenneth and Robert Thayer; Lucretia, who resides at home; Hattie M., also resides at. home; their other three children died in infancy. Mr. Thayer is a man of strong will, of great energy and of strict adherence to the course which he believes to be right, and commands the respect of all with whom he comes in contact.

LORENZO D. THAYER.

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ISAAC BURNETT TAFT.

We are pleased to have the privilege of pre- senting for the consideration of our readers the record of a very old and honorable family, whose different members for three centuries have been actively and prominently connected with the life of New England. The record will be somewhat imperfect owing to the impossibility of securing authentic data, but what is here presented will be of great interest to the friends of the family, The first member of the family of whom we have authentic information was the grandfather of the deceased subject of this sketch, whose name was Isaiah Taft. He passed his early life in the vicin- ity of Dummerston, and later in Newfane. His wife's maiden name was Hattie Kerper. One of his sons was Caleb Taft, who became the father of Isaac B. Taft. Caleb Taft married Mary Bur- nett, who became the mother of Edson, Isaac B., Lydia and Charles. He lived out his lifetime in the same neighborhood and died at the age of sixty-eight years. His wife died at the age of seventy-eight.

Mr. Isaac B. Taft was born in Newfane, April 28, 1824, and died at his home in District No. ·6, near Brattleboro, August 3, 1901, at the age of seventy-seven years. In early life his parents were engaged in the hotel business at West Dum- merston, a station at which the old stage horses were changed on the trip from Townshend to Brattleboro, and which property was owned by Mr. Taft at the time of his death. Arriving at maturity Mr. Taft married Miss Hariett Cham- pion at her home in Hartford, Vermont, the date being 1852. They soon came to this vicinity and settled on a farm, the old "Chamberlain place," now owned by Daniel Barber. The family consist- ed of five children ; Frank, deceased; John, West Dummerston; Burr, Norfolk, Nebraska; Nora, deceased ; and Guy, of Brattleboro.

Mr. Taft was a great power for good during his lifetime, and was held in high regard by all ·classes of people. We are privileged to quote the following from the Vermont Phoenix, a news- paper published in his home community: "Mr. Taft was known as a real forty-niner. He and his brother Charles started for the famous gold fields in California in 1849. They went in a sail- ing vessel called Barque Rochelle around Cape

Horn, a long, tedious and somewhat perilous journey. Mr. Taft remained three years and five months in California, when he was glad to re- turn to civilization. Our deceased friend was a pleasant, accommodating neighbor and successful farmer. He was a man of excellent business ca- pacity, as was shown by his well tilled acres and in connection with his duties as director of the Grange store, in which organization he served until after the store was removed to its present site. Mr. Taft was a charter member of the Pro- tective Grange, and also of Windham County Pomona Grange, and he had held several offices

FRANK TAFT.

in both societies. He did much for their advance- ment from the very first by his words of wisdom and encouragement.

Mr. Taft's widow still survives him. Of their children the two deceased members are worthy of some further notice. Frank Taft died at the age of thirty-three years, having spent much i

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his lie in his native town of Brattleboro. He was a graduate of the high school, being a member of the class of 188; After his graduation he became connected with the machine shops of Brattleboro. and Smithville, New Jersey, and Hartford, Con- necticut, and later took up the study of electricity. Finally he became superintendent of the Brattle- boro electric light works, a position which he held for six years, and then became connected with a machine business in Greenfield. He later went to Norfolk, Nebraska, to recuperate his failing health. He was unsuccessful in that aim and died there September 25, 1901. He was a young man whose distinguishing characteristics were his great energy and perseverance in anything that he undertook. His death was a severe loss to his family and to the community at large.

Of the second deceased child, Nora, it may be said that no more lovely character was ever con- nected with the social life of Brattleboro. She was reared in this community and graduated at the high school, after which she attended the Westfield Normal School, where she graduated in 1888. For a number of years thereafter she was a successful and popular teacher in the Brattle- boro schools and also at West Newton, Massa- chusetts. She later went to Norfolk, Nebraska, where she taught for two years in the schools of that city, and then was married June 20, 1895, to Alvin B. Pratt, a prominent citizen of that city. Her health failed her, and her husband took her to Pasadena, California, for recuperation, but it was without avail, and she passed away on the 19th of January, 1902. She was a cultured lady and a woman of magnetic personality, and well beloved by her pupils, in whose success she took a deep personal interest.

The paternal grandfather of Mrs. Isaac B. Taft was John Champion, a native of England, who settled at Lynn, Connecticut. His family consisted of Isaiah and John, the latter the father of Mrs. Taft. When John Champion came to manhood he located in Uxbridge, Massachusetts. He later removed to Lebanon and thence to Hart- ford, Vermont, in which latter place he died. He married Harriet Abbott, of Concord, New Hamp- shire, and was the father of the following : Lucy, Sarah, Ezra, and Mrs. I. B. Taft, who was born May 25, 1828, at Lebanon. We have thus given the record of a family which has left its impress

for good upon society in every community it has touched, and it will no doubt be of great interest to the readers of this volume.

J. GILBERT STAFFORD.

Thomas Stafford (1), founder of the Ameri- can family of his name, was born in Warwick- shire, England, in 1605. He is said to have been in Plymouth, Massachusetts, in 1626, and to have there built the first mill in this country for grinding corn. He was in Newport, Rhode Isl- and, after 1638 and in Warwick in 1652. He was a freeman in 1655, and deputy in 1673. He mar- ried Elizabeth (name unknown), and they both died in Warwick in 1677. Their children were: Thomas, died January 26, 1723; Samuel, born in 1636, diedi March 20, 1718; Hannah, died in 1692; Sarah, died in 1669; Joseph, born March 21, 1648, died in 1697; Deborah, born in 1651, died in 1706.

Samuel (2) was a man of great prominence. He was deputy in 1670-72-74-79-82-86-90-1705, and was elected assistant but declined to serve. and in 1687 he was overseer of the poor. He died in Warwick, Rhode Island, March 20, 1718. He married Mary, daughter of Stukeley West- cott, and their children were: Stukeley, born November 7, 1661, died young ; Amos, born No- vember 8, 1665, died in 1760; Mercy, born July 8, 1668; Sarah, born April 18, 1671; Samuel, born November 19, 1673, died young; Patience died October 23, 1721; Freelove; Elizabeth ; Thomas, born in 1682, died November 18, 1765. Thomas (3), born in Warwick, was a freeman, deputy 1720-22-25-26-28, and was in Coventry in 1747 and bore the title of captain. He died No- vember 18, 1765. He married, first, December 25, 1707, Anne, daughter of Job and Phoebe (Sayles) Greene, and, second, July 16, 1719, Au- dry, daughter of Richard and Eleanor (Sayles) Greene, and a great-granddaughter of Roger Williams. His children were : Phoebe, born April 10, 1710; Anne, born January 4, 1712; Mercy, born March 12, 1715; Job, born April 11, 1716; Samuel, born February 8, 1717; Deborah, born April 19, 1748; Eleanor, born April 25, 1720; Richard, born September 24, 1721; Thomas, born April 20, 1723; Samuel, born December 6, 1724; Almy, born April 9, 1728; Job, born

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November 14, 1729; Audry, born February 8, 1731 ; John, born May 5, 1735.

John (4) was probably born in Warwick. He married, January 18, 1753, Mary, daughter of Isaac King, of Scituate, Rhode Island, and re- moved about 1780 to Guilford, Vermont, where it is supposed he and his wife died. Their chil- dren were: John, Job, Isaac, Obadiah, Samuel, Stuveley, Thomas, Elizabeth.

Samuel (5) was born at Scituate, Rhode Isl- and, January 2, 1757. In July, 1775, he enlisted for a period of one year in the patriot army ; in 1777 he again enlisted, first for three months, then for two months, and the following year for nine months, and his final term of enlistment was for five months in 1779. The following year he removed with his parents to Guilford, Vermont, where he pursued farming for three years, af- ter which he finally settled in Halifax, Vermont, where the remainder of his life was spent, and where he died January 12, 1846, the owner of considerable property. He married Esther, daugh- ter of Samuel and Desire (Safford) Gore, and their children were : Desire, born March 23, 1781, died November 7, 1858; Esther, born in 1791, died August 8, 1803; Samuel, born November 6, 1784, died January 21, 1852.

Samuel (6) was born in Halifax, Vermont, reared upon a farm, and his boyhood days were equally divided between assisting his father with the work and attending the district school. Upon attaining manhood he engaged in farming, which he successfully followed all his life in his na- tive town, and he acquired large tracts of land in the town of Halifax. He married Abigail Wells, July 13, 1806, and their children were: Esther, born October 20, 1807, died February 2, 1859; Philena, born in 1808, died July 5, 1851 ; James Madison, born September 27, 1810, died May 16, 1837; Rufus, born in 1813, died May 10, 1838; Samuel, born January 9, 1817, died October 25, 1875 ; Dana Hyde, born in 1819, died March 29, 1849; Abigail, born in January, 1827, died August 26, 1828; John Wolcott, born Au- gust 3, 1830, died December II, 1886. The par- ents died, respectively, January 21, 1852, and January 29, 1851.

Samuel (7), was born at Halifax, Vermont, where he acquired a good education in the com-

mon schools. He was reared upon a farm and gave his life to that calling in his native town. He was a member of the state militia and bore the title of colonel. He was married to Almeda, a daughter of Joseph and Rebecca (Barney) Gallup, September 13, 1841, and the following named children were born to them: Danforth Clark, born December 22, 1843, died June 8, 1846; Wolcott Albert, born November 13, 1845, died October 5, 1889; Dana Hyde, born June 17, 1850, died July 16, 1875 ; Joseph Gilbert, born January 28, 1856; Effie Capitola, born April 5, 1859, died September 25, 1862. Mr. Stafford died October 25, 1875, and his widow survived until October 7, 1882.

Joseph Gilbert Stafford (8) fourth child of Samuel (7) and Almeda (Gallup) Stafford, was born in Halifax, Vermont. He began his edu- cation in the district schools and afterwards at- tended Brattleboro Academy and the Powers Institute at Bernardston. He was reared upon the paternal farm and became a successful farmer. In 1883 he removed to a farm in Brat- tleboro, consisting of one hundred tnd twenty- five acres, which formerly was the property of Thomas Crosby. Mr. Stafford devotes his at- tention to general farming, keeps ten Jersey cows for dairy purposes, has forty head of Shropshire sheep and four horses, and his farm is the best cultivated and the most productive in that sec- tion of the state.

The family now reside in the residence just erected on Guilford street, Brattleboro. Since 1897 Mr. Stafford has acted as president of the Brattiebore Creamery, which owes much of its prosperity to his excellent management. He is à man of the highest integrity and broad public spirit, and for six years has served the community most capably in the position of school commis- sioner.

Mr. Stafford was married. June 30, 1880, to Miss Abbie Mather Hamilton and to them were born three children : Dana Hamilton, born March 13, 1881, and Hector Leslie, born April 26, 1882, both of whom have been students in the West Brattleboro Academy and Miss Parke's School : and Vernor Fay, born September 9, 1888, and died May 1, 1890.

Mrs. Stafford is a lady of excellent attain-

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ment and is a member of various patriotic ofder, the Vermont Society of Colonial Dames, the Daughters of the American Revolution, in wlach she has served on the board of manage- ment. and the United States Daughters of 1812, of which she is the historian. Her parents were Joseph Henry and Abbie (Mather) Hamilton. She is a lincal descendant of John Hamilton (I), who was one of the Scotch prisoners of war taken by Cromwell at the battle of Dunbar, Sep- tember 3, 1650, and sent to this country. He was given a grant of land in Charlestown, Mas- sachusetts, in 1658; in 1668 he was in Concord, where he died in 1680. He married Christian (name unknown), and their children born in Concord, were John, born March 1, 1668, and Joseph, born January 9, 1671.

John (2) was born in Concord, Massachus- etts, March I, 1668. In 1701 he removed to Brookfield, one of the early settlers of the town, where he became a man of much influence. He was given several grants of land, in all five hun- dred and fifty-six acres, and with two exceptions was the largest taxpayer in town. He served in Major John Chandos' Company in 1722, and was on garrison duty against the Indians many times. He died in Brookfield, Massachusetts, December 9, 1747. He married, first, Sarah, and, second, Hannah, the family name of both unknown. His first wife bore him a son, Joseph, September 5, 1697. The children of his second marriage were John, born August 26, 1699; Hannah, Dorothy, Jonah, Nathan and Amos.

Lieutenant John Hamilton (3) was born in Concord, Massachusetts, August 26, 1699. He came with his parents to Brookfield, where, like his father, he was a large landowner. He served in Colonel Samuel Partridge's regiment in 1722, was corporal under Sergeant Warner, stationed at Brookfield, and was in Lieutenant Samuel Wright's company in 1723-24. In 1745 he was with Captain Thomas Buckminster at Fort Dum- mer, below Brattleboro, Vermont. He married, January 8, 1725, Mary, daughter of Samuel and Joanna (Woolcott) Wheeler, and great-grand -. daughter of Resolved White. He died in Brook- field, February 15, 1746. His children were: Reuben, born November 6, 1726; John, born De- cember 18, 1728; Levi, born December 25, 1730; Hannah, born December 19, 1733; Silas, born

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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 II, Part 36

Author: Carleton, Hiram, 1838- ed Publication date: 1903 Publisher: New York, Chicago, The Lewis Publishing Company Number of Pages: 1044

Author: Carleton, Hiram, 1838- ed
Publication date: 1903
Publisher: New York, Chicago, The Lewis Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 1044