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 38
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On December 29, 1862, Judge Hall married Elizabeth M., daughter of George and Marion ( Miller) Donaldson, of Ryegate, Vermont. Judge and Mrs. Hall have two children living: Isaac Newton ; and Elizabeth M., who was graduated from Montpelier Seminary. Isaac Newton Hall is engaged in farming on the Hall homestead, which was inherited from a maternal ancestor, and has been in the possession of the family for nearly a century. The original farm, from which some village lots have been sold, contains about ninety acres of land, and to this has been added by purchase about one hundred and ten acres, the farm being managed by I. N. Hall. He was born in 1870, received his education at the dis- trict schools and in the Montpelier Seminary. He is serving as lister, and is a member of the Meth- odist Episcopal church. He married Mattie J. Chalmers, of Topsham, by whom he has two chil- dren, William Bartlett and Mary Josephine.
JOHN S. BROWN.
John S. Brown, noted as a man of peculiar mechanical ability throughout his section of the country, was born in Stafford, Orange county, Vermont, May 13, 1824. His grandfather, Moses Brown, was born in Kingston, New Hampshire, and followed farming as an occupation. He was a very zealous churchman, following conscien- tiously his religious convictions. During the lat- ter part of his life he devoted a great deal of time to religious work, and was widely known as a thorough Bible scholar ; his opinion was much sought after in such matters. Notwithstanding his religious tendencies, he was a man of jovial
disposition, his watticios affording much amuse- ment and pleasure among his friends; in debate he was a keen adversary, and not easily over- thrown. He was accounted a man of rare in- telligence, and was frequently consulted in mat ters of dispute, both of a civic and domestic nature. His wife was Mary Hobbs, by whom he had the following children : Peter, Stephen, Reu- ben, Samuel, Abram, Enos, Moses, Jr., Simon, John and Sallie. Mr. Brown died at Strafford. Vermont, in the eighty-third year of his age, and his wife passed away at the age of eighty.
John S. Brown
Moses Brown, Jr., father of John S. Brown, was born at Poplin, near Kingston, New Hamp- shire. When he was four years old his parents removed to Strafford, Vermont, where he spent the remainder of his life. After completing his general common school education he began farm- ing, of which line he made a great success ; his
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practical application of up-to-date ideas and methods did much toward accomplishing the best results. Besides his farming activities he was often called upon to act as juryman. He was a member of the Baptist church, in whose interests he labored zealously, and whose tenets he followed closely in his every-day life. He married Ke- ziah Kimball, by whom he had eight children, namely: Charles S., who married Eliza Hazen, to whom were born three children, Elizabeth, John and Moses ; Sila, wife of David Preston, and their children are Charles, Serena and Marsena ; Lucetta, deceased; Harry, who married Harriet Chandler, their children being George and Ade- line; Harriet H., wife of Oren Ladd, their chil- dren being Clara, Hattie and Calvin Robert ; John S., who married Harriet Van Dorn; Harri- son, whose first wife was Rebecca Kilburn, and after her death he married again; Stephen F., who married Louise Sharp, of Strafford, their children being Lucetta, Henry, Mary, Frank and Hattie. - The father of these children died in January, 1880, in the ninety-seventh year of his age; the mother passed away in 1865 at the age of seventy years.
John S. Brown, son of Moses and Keziah (Kimball) Brown, received his preliminary edu- cation in the district schools of Strafford. At the age of fifteen years he took an academic course, and finally entered Kimball Union Acad- emy, Plainfield (now Meriden), New Hamp- shire, from which he was graduated in 1845. He then taught school for a short time, but nat- ural inclination soon made him seek some line of mechanical work; he took up cabinet-making as a trade, and followed wood-carving as an occu- pation in Boston, and later in the furniture busi- ness at Brattleboro, in which he continued up to 1863, when he removed to Windsor, Vermont. On account of failing health and the necessity for more outdoor exercise, Mr. Brown purchased a farm, which he worked for about six years. Hav- ing regained his health he sold his farm and re- moved to North Thetford, Vermont, where for four years more he engaged in farming; after this he returned to Brattleboro, and was given charge of the action department of the Estey Organ factory, which position he filled up to 1876. Mr. Brown built three houses, one of which he constructed with his own hands. He is now
retired from active business pursuits, having earned a wide reputation as a mechanical genius, and his unerring judgment in matters of me- chanical skill has ever brought about the best results when practically applied by his master hand. In politics Mr. Brown is a Prohibitionist.
On July 6, 1848, Mr. Brown was united in marriage to Harriet Van Dorn, daughter of An- thony and Betsey (Hubbard) Van Dorn. They had one child, Lizzie Hattie Newell Brown, who
CA. Von Doom.
died at St. Augustine, Florida, in the twenty-first year of her age.
Moses Van Dorn, grandfather of Mrs. Brown, resided at Bristol, Rhode Island, during the early part of his life, the latter part being spent at Fitzwilliam and West Brattleboro. He owned a fourth interest in a plantation at De- merara, South America, and was an extensive
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producer of sugar and molasses. He was twice married ; his first wife, grandmother of Mrs. Brown, bore him the following children : Han . nah, Mary, Philip and Anthony (father of Mrs. Brown). His second wife was a Mrs. Pratt. His death occurred in 1867 at West Brattleboro, Vermont, where his remains rest in the old cen- etery.
Anthony Van Dorn, father of Mrs. Brown, was born at Bristol, Rhode Island, October 14, 1792. His wife was Betscy Hubbard, born No- vember 4, 1790. They had the following chil- dren: Mary Elizabeth, born in 1816; Charles Barrett, born in 1818, died in childhood; Moses T., born in 1821, married Sophia Simonds, and they reside at Brattleboro, where he is engaged in the crockery business; they have one child, Eldridge H .; Harriet, born January 17, 1823, wife of John S. Brown; Charles A., born January 3, 1825, now living at West Brattleboro; he has been twice married, first to Sarah Brown, and sec- ond to a Miss Baldwin. Anthony Van Dorn was a cabinet-maker by trade, and accumulated by his industry and thrift a handsome competence. He was the first in Brattleboro to keep ready- made burial caskets. Toward the close of his life he made a tour of Europe, which gave him pe- culiar gratification, as for years he had looked forward with keen pleasure to the time when he could see the wonders of the old world. He was a member of the Congregational church, and an interested supporter of various benevolent societies, among them the American Coloniza- tion Society. He took the liveliest interest in Sunday-school work, and was one of the two to begin that work in Brattleboro. A man of high aspirations, dignified bearing and independence of character, an exemplary citizen, honored and respected as such. He removed from West Brat- tleboro to East Battleboro in 1830. He died at Providence, Rhode Island, on August 22, 1871.
David Hubbard, the maternal grandfather of Mrs. Brown, married Mary Barrett, who comes of an old Concord, Massachusetts, family. Their children were as follows . Silas, Eben, David, Betsy, Charles, Mary and Sarah. After the death of David Hubbard, his wife Mary married David Nutting.
GENERAL WILLIAM H. GILMORE.
General William H. Gilmore, adjutant and quartermaster general of the state of Vermont, a veteran of the Civil war, and for many years a prominent agriculturist of Fairlce, Orange county, Vermont, was born October 17, 1839, in the house which he continued to occupy up to November, 1901.
Robert Gilmore, the progenitor of the Ameri- can branch of the family, settled in London- derry, New Hampshire, having come direct from Ireland, although a native of Scotland. His son, William Gilmore, was the father of a son named James Gilmore, who resided in Windham, New Hampshire, acted in the capacity of captain in the early part of the Revolutionary war and later was promoted to the rank of colonel, his com- mission being still in the possession of the family. His son, Robert Gilmore, settled in Acworth, New Hampshire, in 1791, was united in marriage to Jennie Houston, and one son was born to them, Alexander H. Gilmore.
Alexander H. Gilmore, father of General Gilmore, was born in Acworth, New Hampshire, in 1804, acquired his education in the common schools of the town, and in 1815 removed to Fairlee, Vermont. He settled on the farm which was occupied by General Gilmore up to the year 1901, and, being a man'of considerable ability and possessing more than ordinary intelligence, he became one of the most extensive and suc- cessful farmers of that section of the state. He took an active and prominent part in town and county affairs, holding some local office the greater portion of the time; he served five years in the Vermont legislature, was eight years judge of the probate court, and county judge for one year. On December 10, 1829, Mr. Gilmore mar- ried Mary May Child, daughter of Darius and Letitia (Morris) Child. Their children were: Letitia, Jane, Spencer C., Edwin A., James W., William H., Mary A., Parmelia C. and Catherine J. Gilmore. The father of these children died in 1873.
Darius Child, father of Mary May (Child) Gilmore, was born at Woodstock, Connecticut, in 1779, subsequently removed to Fairlee, Ver- mont, where he held various offices and became
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a man of considerable wealth and influence ; he weighed over two hundred pounds, and was possessed of great strength and endurance. He married Letitia Morris, and their children were: Alfred, Almira, William, Mary, Cornelia, Ed- ward Spencer, Ephraim and Mary May Child. Mr. Child died December 10, 1866, aged eighty- seven years. Alfred Child, son of Nathaniel Child, was born in Woodstock, Connecticut, in 1753, and in 1777 married Mary Child May, a native of the same town. His death occurred in 1809. Nathaniel Child, father of Alfred Child, was a son of Benjamin Child, who was at Rox- bury, Massachusetts, in 1656; Benjamin was a son of Ephraim, who was born in England, in 1593, came to the United States in 1630, and married a widow by the name of Mary Elizabeth Palmer, of Suffolk county, England, a daughter of Jonas Bond; the ceremony was performed in 1625. Ephraim Child was admitted a freeman May 8, 1631, was a leading public man in Water- town, Massachusetts, having held various offices in town and county, among them being justice for the trial of small causes, and selectman of his town, being the incumbent of this office fifteen years. He was an intimate friend of Governor John Winthrop and a zealous churchman, having served for many years in the capacity of deacon. His death occurred in 1663, at the age of seventy years. Benjamin Child came from England to America, was of the order of nobility, a man of extraordinary business capacity, careful and methodical, occupied a high position in the com- munity, and was an earnest churchman. He became a man of considerable wealth, being one of the influential residents of Roxbury, Massa- chusetts, where his death occurred in 1678; many of his descendants have made their permanent home in that town. His son, Benjamin, inherited a large share of his father's property, and resided at the old homestead in Roxbury; he married a Morris and twelve children were born to them. Benjamin Child died in 1724, his wife having died the previous year.
General Gilmore acquired his preliminary education in the common schools of Fairlee, and this was supplemented by a thorough course in the academies of Thetford and Barre, and the Newbury Seminary. He then entered the New London Academy, and while a student in that
institution the call came to raise a regiment to accompany General Butler on the Louisiana ex- pedition. In one scale of the balance were the comforts and enjoyments of home, the delights of scholarship and the allurements of honorable ambition-on the other side was the lot of the private soldier, hardship, privation, danger and perhaps death in the field, hospital or prison pen. He felt his country's need of him, and enlisted in December, 1861, in Company D, Eighth Ver- mont Volunteers, under command of Colonel Stephen Thomas. The following July he was promoted to the position of quartermaster ser- geant, and in that capacity faithfully shared the labors and perils of that gallant old regiment until his discharge after three years' service. He then returned to his farm, which was on the river road above Fairlee village, where he resided un- til 1901 ; the farm consisted of four hundred acres of land with two spacious white houses erected upon it ; there were a number of grand old maples in front of the residences, while a broad meadow spread down to the river. General Gilmore de- voted his attention to agricultural pursuits and the raising of sheep, being the owner at one time of a flock of three hundred and seventy-five high grade Merinos. For more than thirty-nine years he acted as town treasurer of Fairlee, served as representative during the years of 1878 and '79. Was chosen for senator of Orange county in 1882 and 1883, and a member of Governor Barstow's staff the same year. In July, 1883, the Ely riot, so-called, occurred, and Colonel Gilmore's quali- ties and judgment and promptness were tested. In the absence of Quartermaster General Ide, Colonel Gilmore received orders from Governor Barstow to furnish transportation for four com- panies from Bradford to the mines. There was not a stable team to be procured in Bradford, and Colonel Gilmore at once arranged with the sheriff to make a requisition for some coke teams at Post Mills, which were secretly hurried for- ward to Ely station, the nearest railway point, from which three companies were sent forward while the Bradford company, under command of Captain J. H. Watson, marched from Bradford to the mines by a detour around the hills under the guidance of Sheriff Berry, and captured the magazine at a critical time. In 1886 Colonel Gilmore was elected quartermaster of the state,
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and since coming into the office he has made man changes of importance and has been mstrumental in raising the standard of efficiency of the Guard. He has taken a great amount of interest in it. and his ambition has been to make it as near perfect as possible. The same may be said in his position of adjutant general, to which he was appointed October 1, 1900, by Governor Smith, to fill an unexpired term. He has caused an al- most complete renovation of the archives in which are kept the valuable papers connected with this department in the State House, and has placed them in such a way as to be thoroughly conven- ient and easy of access. The satisfaction which he has given to the people of the state is 'evi- denced by his repeated election to both offices. Since October 1, 1900, he has given his entire time to the duties of these two offices, for which he is so well qualified. General Gilmore is well and favorably known throughout the state, and, while he always conducts himself with becoming dignity, is at the same time most polite, courte- ous and agreeable to all with whom he may be brought in contact. His efforts are ably seconded by his wife, who, like her husband, possesses keen perceptions and fine qualities of intuition. In the town in which they have resided for so many years, both General Gilmore and his wife are greatly admired by all who know them, and their circle of acquaintances throughout the state is very large.
In January, 1866, General Gilmore married Mary T. Haselton. Their children are: Alex- ander H., now a journalist at Newport News, Virginia ; and Kathie M. Alexander H. Gilmore was born in 1866, at Fairlee, Vermont, educated at Rockpoint Episcopal Institute, and is at the present time (1903) engaged in the capacity of manager of the Daily Press at Newport News, Virginia; he is unmarried. Catherine May (Kathie) is the wife of Harry Bailey Chamber- lain, who was born in Newbury, Vermont, and educated at St. Johnsbury Academy. He was en- gaged in the hardware business until the break- ing out of the Spanish-American war, when he responded to the first call for troops and enlisted May 4, 1898; at Fort Ethan Allen. His command was stationed at Chattanooga, where he acted as quartermaster and captain of volunteers. and in July, 1898, he was commissioned a captain in the
regular army, served two years in Cuba on con - Struction work of public property, of which he had complete charge, and for the past two year. he has been engaged in the Philippines in the same line of work. Mrs. Chamberlain spent one winter in Cuba during her husband's sojourn there. They have one child, Dorothy Chamber- lain, born August 4, 1896. The date of their marriage was April 6, 1892.
CHARLES COBURN LORD.
Charles Coburn Lord, editor and publisher of the Groton Times, is a wide-awake, enterprising, brainy man, who during the six years that he has lived in Groton has contributed his full share towards promoting its industries, and developing its resources. A son of John P. and Elizabeth (Colburn) Lord, he was born in Orange, Ver- mont, August 29, 1864, and was brought up as a farmer's son.
Mr. Lord received his academical education at the Barre Academy, after which he continued his studies in the preparatory department of Ober- lin College. He subsequently remained with his parents for some time, assisting in the care of the home farm and teaching school. In the winter of 1887 he spent several months in the wild woods of Maine, acting as scaler, clerk and paymaster at a logging camp, an experience that proved both pleasant and novel to him. While yet a lad he became interested in the printer's art, and as soon as he had accumulated a few dollars that he could spend for his own use he bought a small hand press, which he learned to operate with great facility. This was afterwards ex- changed for a larger one, and many remunerative jobs of printing came his way even while he was living in Orange, his first order of any im- portance having been from Professor A. B. Cor- liss, of Old Bridge, New Jersey.
Mr. Lord removed to West Topsham in 1894, and soon after started a paper, The Observer, with which he was actively connected either as editor or manager for a year. The location be- ing unfavorable for his business purposes, he came to Groton in September, 1896, and, receiving . sufficient encouragement from leading citizens of the town, began the publishing of a paper, the first number of The Times being issued by him in
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January, 1897. The circulation of this journal, small at first, has largely increased, making its way each week into thousands of homes, keeping its readers in touch with the business, social and political events of the day. This venture of Mr. Lord's has been a success in every way, remuner- ating him for his strenuous efforts, and proving of inestimable value to the residents of the Wells River valley. New type and machinery have been introduced in the printing room, the paper has recently been enlarged by the addition of a column to each page, and other improvements are con- stantly making their appearance.
Mr. Lord married, in 1889, Miss Etta May Wilds, of Orange, an accomplished woman, who assists him to some extent in the office, while she presides most gracefully over their home. Mr. and Mrs. Lord have three children, Ralph Christie, Wendell Edmunds and Charles Del- win.
WILLIAM LUTHER STONE.
William Luther Stone, a well known business man of Burlington, was born on the 16th of De- cember, 1850, in Charlotte, Vermont, which was also the birthplace of his father, the late Ammi F. Stone. This prominent old family trace their ancestry back to Sir William Stone, of England. who is believed to have been one of the signers of the death warrant of Charles I. The great- great-grandfather of our subject was Charles Stone, who lived and died in Stockbridge, and by his wife, Jemima, he became the father of five children, the eldest of whom, Dan, became a physician, and settled in Monkton, Vermont. The second son, Ethan, a lawyer by profession, was engaged in practice in Lenox, Massachusetts, but subsequently removed west and finally lo- cated in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he rose to a posi- tion of affluence. The third son, whose name is not known, settled in northern Ohio, where many of his descendants are still living. The two daughters of the family, one of whom bore the name of Loraina, married, the latter locating in western New York, while the other married a brewer and resided in South Tyringham, now Monterey, Massachusetts. The youngest member of the family, Luther Stone, became the great-grandfather of
William Luther Stone. He emigrated from Stockbridge, Massachusetts, to Vermont in an early day, becoming one of the first household- ers of the town of Arlington. He followed mer- cantile pursuits in both Massachusetts and Ver- mont, and was a man of unblemished reputation and high standing in the communities in which he lived. Both he and his wife lie buried in the beautiful cemetery at Stockbridge, their tomb- stones being still in an excellent state of preserva- tion, and on the former's stone is the following inscription : "Who, not conscious of any wrong, was not afraid to die." The old house and store in which these honored ancestors lived and traded are still standing, and the old homestead farm is beautifully located on Stockbridge Lake, one of the handsomest places in Berkshire county, and the one chosen by the author Hawthorne for his residence. To Luther and Oladine Stone were born ten children, as follows: Charles, of Sandy Hill, New York; Ethan, who settled in Mead- ville, Pennsylvania; John, who also located in that city; Luther, the grandfather of our sub- ject; Joel, who became a resident of Charlotte, Vermont; Stephen, of Wisconsin; Aaron, who settled in Arlington, Vermont, but subsequently died by his own hand ; Betsey, who married Gen- eral Martin Roberts, of Manchester, Vermont, where she lived and was buried; Julia, who be- came the wife of a Mr. Bonney, but subsequently went to live with her sister Betsey. where she made her home until death; and Mira, who was first marired to a Mr. Jones, of Jonesville, New- York, and after his death she became the wife of Mr. Roberts.
The late Edward Roberts, a son of Major General Martin and Betsey (Stone) Roberts, was born at the Roberts homestead in Manchester, Bennington county, Vermont, on the 23d ot March, 1812, and his death occurred in 1893. His great-grandfather, John Roberts, moved during the middle of the last century from Rhode Island to Bennington county, Vermont, and be- came a minute-man, being ever ready to protect his country from the inroads of the French and Indians. The grandfather of Edward was Chris- topher Roberts, who served against the British during the Revolutionary war. Edward Roberts was the son of Major General Martin Roberts, while his mother was Betsey Stone, of Arlington,
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Vermont, Ins father's second wife. This carly life was spent on the Roberts homestead, in the company of seven sisters and sis brothers, one of whom, Major General Benjamin S. Roberts, was a graduate of West Point and served in the Mexican and Civil wars. Edward Roberts, when young, was naturally inclined to reading and study, and it was his constant desire to enter a profession. When thirteen years old he left home and went to Rutland, Vermont, where he entered the office of E. C. Purdy, editor of the Rutland Herald, and a distant relative of his. He remained there about three years, and in the fall of 1829 went to Fishkill-on-the-Hudson, there entering the Highland Grove Gymnasium, a class- ical preparatory school then under the charge of the Rev. Brainard Kent, who afterward became his brother-in-law. There he applied himself dil- igently to his studies, and when not so occupied taught school. In 1831 he entered Williams Col- lege, intending to prepare himself for the min- istry, but his studies were soon abruptly terminat- ed, a severe attack of inflammatory eyes and dyspepsia causing him to retire from college. For the succeeding ten years he was engaged in travel and teaching, devoting as much time to study as he could bear, and being especially fond of Greek, Latin and Hebrew. In 1840 he mar- ried Lucy Maria Benjamin, the daughter of Nathan Benjamin, of South Egremont, Massa- chusetts. By this marriage he had three chil- dren. His first wife died in 1845, and two years later, in 1847, he married his second wife, Irene B. Robinson, a daughter of Dr. Royal Robinson, by whom he had eight children. In 1841 he came to this city and engaged in mercantile pursuits, subsequently becoming one of the founders of the firm of Roberts, Cushman & Company, with which he was afterward connected. His death resulted from cancer of the stomach, and he left a wife, four sons and a daughter.
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