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 69

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 69

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THE STATE OF VERMONT.

Mr. Cleveland is affiliated with the Republican parts, and has been appointed to fill the office of deputy and was elected sheriff of his county. He served as enrolling officer in 1863 and assistant judge in 1878 and 1879, and was chosen to repre- sent the town of Braintree in the state legislature in 1876 and 1877. Mr. Cleveland enlisted as a private in Company F, Twelfth Regiment, Ver- mont Volunteers, in 1862, and served nine months, being elected first lieutenant upon the organization of the company. He is a charter member of Ulysses S. Grant Post No. 96, G. A. R., of West Randolph, and has been a prominent member of the Masonic order for more than thirty years, having held the position of worshipful master for four years and treasurer for twenty-six years in Phoenix Lodge, No. 28, of Randolph. He is also a charter member of Randolph Lodge, No. 48, I. O. O. F.

On August 3, 1850, Mr. Cleveland was united in marriage to Miss Martha Ann, daughter of Elijah and Patience (Neff) Flint, and three chil- dren were born to them: Frank H., Jennie A. and Harry A. Cleveland. The mother of these children died January 4, 1893. The youngest child died April 14, 1900, being " almost forty years old. The elder son resides on the home farm in Braintree. The daughter is the wife of Rev. William I. Chalmers, pastor of the Congre- gational church at Riverhead, New York. Mr. Cleveland was married July 2, 1896, to Lucinda, widow of DeWitt C. Flint, and daughter of the late Sylvanus Spooner, who died while a soldier in the Civil war.

COLONEL MYRON J. HORTON.

Colonel Myron J. Horton, a leading business man of Poultney, Vermont, a veteran of the Civil war, and prominent in the affairs of the Grand Army of the Republic and other benevolent or- ders, is a descendant of Major Horton, of Revo- lutionary war fame, but whose ancestry is un- known. Major Horton (1) was a resident of Mil- ton, Massachusetts, until 1753 or 1754, when he removed to Bolton and then to Templeton, in the same state, dying in the latter named place. Of his six children, the second was Joseph (2), who lived in Jaffrey, New Hampshire, where he died in May, 184I, at the age of ninety-three years.

He was three times married, first to Hannah Ross, second to Mollie Dean, and third to Susan Page.

Asa (3) was the second of the two children of Joseph and Mollie (Dean) Horton, and was born in Jaffrey, New Hampshire, September I, 1783. He made his home at Mount Holly, Rut- land county, Vermont, where he owned and cul- tivated a farm of two hundred acres./ He served in the war of 1812, and was marching with troops to Lake Champlain, when, at Burlington, intelli- gence of the battle of Plattsburg was received, and the movement ceased. He was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. He was a Whig until 1856, when he joined the newly formed Re- publican party, to which he was attached during the remainder of his life. His wife was Susan, a daughter of Nathaniel Breed, who was present at the battle of Bunker Hill, and was a member of the family which gave its name to Breed's Hill, the ground upon which a portion of the conflict took place. Asa Horton died in 1870, at the age of eighty-six years, long surviving his wife, who died in 1854, at the age of sixty-nine years. Their children were Cyrus, Asa, Joseph, Nathaniel, Susan, Louisa, Mary, Vianna, Julia and Harriet.

Joseph (4), third of the four sons born to Asa and Susan (Breed) Horton, was born April 24, 1815, in Jaffrey, New Hampshire, and he was there reared and in Mount Holly, to which place his father removed. In his youth Joseph Horton sold tinware from a wagon. He subsequently be- came a shoemaker, and worked at his trade until 1860, when he bought a farm, which he culti- vated until 1870. He sold his farm and removed to Bedford, Massachusetts, but shortly afterwards returned to Vermont, locating at Gassett's Sta- tion. In 1883 he sold his farm there, and pur- chased other property near his residence. His wife was Lucy Cobb, daughter of Simeon and Olive (Ball) Cobb. She died January 14, 1896, when Mr. Horton took up his residence in Poult- ney, where he died February 23, 1903, at the age of eighty-seven years and ten months. He was originally a Whig in politics, and afterwards a Republican, and he had served in the state mil- itia. Of his marirage were born three children: (I) Emily I., who is yet living; she married, first, Levi Pierce, and then Cyrus Buswell, of Ludlow, Vermont, who died in 1896; Myron J.,.

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to be written of below; Elmer Ellsworth, born July 20, 1861, who resides in Fitchburg, Massa- chusetts : he married Nellie Low, of Bellows Falls, and their children are William, Myron J. and Helen.

Myron J. (5), second child and elder son of Joseph and Lucy (Cobb) Horton, was born Aug- ust 3, 1841, at Mount Holly, Vermont, where he was reared on the paternal farm, upon which he labored during the spring and summer months, attending the neighborhood schools in the win- ter. In his young manhood he learned from his father the trade of shoemaking. In 1860 he went to Rutland to become clerk in a store, and was so engaged until February 10, 1861, when he went to Boston, where he worked in the Fanueil Hall Market. In the following May he removed to Westboro, Massachusetts. and again became clerk in a store. He was thus occupied until August 4, one day after his coming of age, when his patriotic impulse moved him to enlist as a private in Company E, Fifty-first Regiment, Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, commanded by Colonel A. B. R. Sprague. With his regi- ment he was mustered into the service of the United States at Worcester. Under orders from the seat of war, the regiment was transported by rail to Boston, and thence board the transport Merrimac to Newbern, North Carolina, where it arrived November 25. It participated in the first engagement at Kinston, North Carolina, and afterwards in those at Whitehall, Goldsboro and Pollockville, all in North Carolina. Its term of enlistment having expired, the regiment was mus- tered out of service, and young Horton received his honorable discharge, having performed the full duty of a soldier during various arduous campaigns and in several hard-fought battles. He re-enlisted, however, in the Sixth Massachusetts Volunteers, for garrison duty, and was placed in charge of conscript and convalescent camps at Readville and Gallup Island.

The war having ended, Mr. Horton returned to Boston and entered the employ of Palmer, Waterman & Hatch, dry-goods merchants, in the capacity of clerk. He subsequently withdrew from this house to become a bookkeeper and then cashier in the office of the Aetna Life Insurance Company. After serving in this employment for eleven years, in 1877 he returned to Vermont,

locating in Poultney, where he established a hard- ware and paint business. This enterprise devel- oped rapidly under his energetic management, and soon became one of large dimensions and im- portance. Since December 25, 1895, his son, Arthur Everts, has been associated with him in its conduct.

Mr. Horton has at all times afforded zealous and intelligent effort to the promotion of public interests, and has been called to various positions of importance, having served as town clerk, se- lectman, justice of the peace and treasurer, and served in the latter capacity for sixteen consecu- tive years, still serving. In 1902 he was elected to the state legislature, in which body he was placed on the committee on insurance and banks, a position in which he acquitted himself with much credit and signal usefulness.

Mr. Horton is a prominent member of the order of Odd Fellows, having served as grand master of the grand lodge of Vermont in 1890, as grand representative to the Sovereign Grand Lodge in 1891-92. In Masonry he has attained to high rank. He was made a Mason in Mt. Hermon Lodge, at Medford, Massachusetts, and is now affiliated with Morning Star Lodge No. 37, at Poultney, Vermont, of which he is a past master. He has been high priest of Poultney Chapter No. 10, R. A. M., for nineteen years, a record unexcelled in the capitular history in the state, and was grand high priest of the Grand Royal Arch Chapter of Vermont, in 1894-95. He is a thrice illustrious master of Morning Star Council No. 10, R. & S. M., and was grand master of the grand council of that body in 1896-97. He is a senior warden of Killington Commandery, K. T., of Rutland, and member of Delta Lodge of Perfection. At the last session of the grand lodge he was grand junior warden of the grand lodge, placed here unexpectedly by his many friends. He is also highly prominent in Grand Army circles. He is a charter member of Joyce Post No. 49, of which he was commander for the first and three succeeding terms, and he has sat as a delegate in various state and national encampments. Prior to coming to Vermont he was first lieutenant of the Boston Lancers Cav- alry Association, and this, with his excellent mili- tary record during the Civil war, led to his ap- pointment as aide-de-camp with the rank of col-

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one on the staff of Governor Carroll S. Page. Through the services of patriotic ancestors, he is a member of the order of the Sons of the Ameri- can Revolution. He is a Protestant Episcopalian in religion, and senior warden in the local church, and his political affiliations are with the Republi- can party.

Colonel Horton married Miss Edna Annette, daughter of Don Alphonso Everts, of Poultney. Born of this union was a son, Arthur Everts, who was educated at the Black River Academy and Bryant & Stratton's Business College in Boston, and is now associated with his father as a member of the firm of Myron J. Horton & Son. He mar- ried Miss Grace M. Pierce, a daughter of Nelson Pierce, of Ludlow, and three children have been born to them, Nelson E., Marion P. and Ralph M. Horton.

GEORGE F. BALL.

George Franklin Ball, a prominent and suc- cessful business man of Bellows Falls, Vermont, is a descendant of an old and honored New Eng- land ancestry. John Ball, the founder of the Ball family in America, came from Wiltshire, Eng- land, to Concord, Massachusetts, in 1640, when Nathaniel, his son, was about ten years old. Na- thaniel had four sons, Ebenezer, Eleazer, John and Nathaniel. Nathaniel (2) had seven sons, Caleb, Nathaniel, Thomas, James, Jeremiah, Ben- jamin and Ebenezer, Jeremiah, the son of Na- thaniel (2), married and had six children : Ebe- nezer, Lieutenant Jeremiah, Mary, Elizabeth, Su- sannah and Benjamin. Ebenezer and Rebecca Ball had nine children : Rebecca, Ebenezer, Olive, Susannah, Hannah, Abraham, Bathsheba, Noah and Mary.

Abraham Ball, born January 26, 1765, mar- ried Deliverance Perham and had nine chil- dren : Abraham; Deliverance, born January II, 1784, died March 28, 1849; Hannah, born July 4, 1791 ; Phineas, born June 16, 1794; Rebecca, born February 14, 1797; Olive, born June I, 1799; Ebenezer, born July 29, 1802; Noah, born March 3, 1805; and Mark, born April 15, 1806.

Abraham Ball (2), born October 17, 1786, died April 17, 1847. He married, December I, 1807, Hannah Edwards, of Athens, who was born September 17, 1788, and died October 8,

1839. He married, second, in August, 1810, Nancy Wilson. Abraham Ball's children by Han- nah Edwards were: Amos Tenant Ball, who was born September 4, 1808, and died April 15, 1896; Aaron W., born January 20, 1810; Abra- ham Edwards, born September 21, 1811;

F. P. BALL.

Thomas Branche, born February 19, 1813, was overseer in a cotton factory at Nashua, New Hampshire, and was caught in a belt and killed instantly, July II, 1839; Sylvenus Matoon, born January 23, 1815; Hannah Electa, born Septem- ber 18, 1816; James P., who was born July 29, 1818, and died December 8, 1840; Timothy H., born August 3, 1820; Joseph Rice, born June 20, 1822, and died January 6, 1846; Robert R., born July 1, 1824; Julia Ann, born August 19, 1826; Franklin Phinias, born May 2, 1828, and died August 9, 1896; Orlando S., born December 22, 1830; and Noah Jewett, born September 25, 1835, and died in November, 1902.

Franklin Phinias Ball (3), twelfth child of Abraham and Hannah (Edwards) Ball, was born

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THE STATE OF VERMONT.

in Athens, Vermont, May 2, 1828. He received his education in the common schools of his native town, and when he attained the age of twenty- three years, he removed to Springfield, Vermont, where he was engaged in the scythe-snath man- ufacturing. In 1882 Mr. Ball located in Bellows Falls, in the town of Rockingham, where he en- tered into partnership connection with Albert Derby in the manufacture of scythe-snaths, with which he continued to be connected up to the time of his sudden death from heart failure, Aug- ust 9, 1896. Mr. Ball took an active interest in public affairs, represented Springfield in 1866 and 1867 and Rockingham in 1888 in the state legis- lature, and was also chosen senator from Wind- ham county in 1892. He was a man of excel- lent judgment and exemplary Christian character. He was married, first, May 23, 1852, to Margaret L. Wilson, who was born March 21, 1828, and died January 2, 1855. He married, second, July 21, 1857, Elizabeth Meacham, born September 7, 1834. Their children were: Twin daughters, born and died in February, 1858. Margaret Elizabeth Ball, born July 3, 1861, married Her- bert Daniel Ryder, November 30, 1881, and to them were born six children: Jessie Elizabeth Ryder, born February 18, 1884; Margaret Sarah Ryder, born April 26, 1885; Helen Winifred Ry- der, born June 27, 1887; Charlotte Divoll Ryder, born September 4, 1889 ; Katharine Foster Ryder, born July 26, 1895 ; Daniel Franklin Ryder, born January 9, 1900. George Franklin Ball was born August 10, 1863. Everett Meacham Ball, born December 15, 1864, was a graduate of the Wesley- an University and died March 20, 1888. Wini- fred Eveline Ball, born October 3, 1867, mar- ried, December 27, 1894, Joseph W. Naramore, born March 15, 1868, and to them were born Elizabeth Everett Naramore, November 28, 1895 ; and Margaret Curtis Naramore, December 6, 1899.

Asa Meacham the maternal great-grandfather of George F. Ball was born in Hadley, Massa- chusetts January 26, 1759. He was a blacksmith by trade and was united in marriage to Miss Zilpha Elmer, who was born January 19, 1760, daughter of Hezekiah and Sarah Elmer. The cermony was performed in Hinsdale, New Hamp- shire, in September, 1785, and the following · named children were born to them: Laurence,

born May 27, 1786; Asa, Jr., born February 16, 1788; James, born November 16, 1790; Benja- min, born January 25, 1792 ; Augustin, born Sep- tember 10, 1794; Edmund H., born April 22, 1795 ; Almira, born January 17, 1797 ; and John, born December 10, 1800. Mr. Meacham died in Claremont, New Hampshire, May 5, 1836, and his wife died December II, 1821.

Asa Meacham, grandfather of George F. Ball, was a prominent resident of Claremont, New Hampshire, where he pursued the trade of cloth- ier and dyer for many years. In 1836 he re- moved to Springfield, Vermont, and purchased a farm, where he was engaged in agricultural pur- suits up to the time of his death. He was an active and earnest member of the Episcopal church of Springfield, Vermont, of which body he was for many years the only male member. He was united in marriage, February 10, 1817, to Miss Margaret Farwell, who was born October 17, 1795, a daughter of Jesse and Abigail (Allen) Farwell. Their children were: Hezekiah, born December 14, 1818, died February 26, 1819; Ed- mund Hubbard, born December 27, 1819, died October 22, 1861 ; Horace, born June 13, 1822, died February 22, 1831 ; George, born February 6, 1824; Eveline, born April 27, 1827, died Sep- tember 1, 1863 ; Sarah, born November 24, 1828, died May 27, 1887 ; and Elizabeth, born Septem- ber 7, 1834. The father of these children died May 18, 1878, aged ninety years, and his wife passed away in 1865.

George F. Ball, son of Franklin P. and Eliza- beth Ball, was born August 10, 1863. He re- ceived a common school education, and after completing his studies, his first employment was in his father's factory for seven years, in the ca- pacity of a mechanic, and during this period he acquired a general acquaintance with all of the details of the business. He was subsequently for five or six years engaged in fire and life insurance business in Bellows Falls. In 1896 was admitted as a partner to the company, which is still con- tinued under the old firm name of Derby & Ball, the other member of the firm being Albert Derby. (See sketch of Albert Derby in this work.) This concern has the distinction of being the largest company in the world devoted exclusively to the manufacture of scythe snaths, and turns out more than one-fourth of the product of such establish-

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ments in the United States. Mr. Ball is an active and progressive business man, and he richiy mer- its the high regard in which he is held by his mmicrons friends.

Mr. Ball is a prominent member of the Ma- some order, being connected with King Solo- mon's Lodge; Abenaqui Chapter; Holy Cross Commandery No. 30, Knights Templar; and Mount Sinai Temple. He is also a member of Bellows Falls Lodge, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and socially is interested in the West- minster Club.

OZRO MEACHAM.

Ozro Meacham, a prominent merchant and dealer in clothing and men's furnishings at Bran- con, Vermont, also one of its most enterprising and progressive citizens, taking an active part not only in its business interests but also in its politi- cal and social life, was born in Potsdam, New York, and was brought to Brandon, Vermont, when but two years of age, where he has lived ever since.

Jonathan Meacham, great-grandfather of Ozro Meacham, was born at old Salem, Massachusetts, whence he removed to Williamstown, Massa- chusetts, where he became one of the proprietors of the town. About the year 1781 he took up his residence in Benson, Vermont, being among the first settlers and proprietors of that town, and devoted his attention to agricultural pursuits ; he was prominent in civil and military affairs, hav- ing served in the French and Indian war, and also in the Revolutionary war. He was united in mar- riage to Thankful Rugg, and they became the parents of seven sons and seven daughters.

Isaac Meacham, grandfather of Ozro Meach- am, was born in Williamstown, Massachusetts, April 3, 1766. Later his parents removed to Benson, Vermont, one of the first towns settled in the county after the Revolutionary war, and here he resided on a farm until 1833, when he removed to Brandon, Vermont, where his death oc- curred in 1844, at the age of seventy-eight years. He married Phobe Thompson, who was born in Pawlet, Vermont, May 27, 1767, and the follow- ing named children were born to them: Ansel, a successful farmer of Pottsdam; Alonzo, who went west and was never heard of again ; Aurelius

A., a wheelwright in Brandon, where he located carly in life: Rosetta Rosina, who married and accompanied her husband to Illinois; Almena Losette, who married Mr. Rich, a resident of New York; and Alanson Meacham.

Alanson Meacham, father of Ozro Meacham, was born in Orwell, Vermont, October 17, 1801, and after completing his education he learned the trade of a blacksmith. In 1833 he removed to Brandon, Vermont, entered into partnership with his brother Aurelius A. Meacham in the wagon and carriage-making trade, under the firm style of A. A. & A. Meacham. They conducted a flourishing business for those days, when every- thing was made by hand, gave employment to a force of twenty-five men in the various depart- ments, and the business continued to increase in size and importance until 1855, when the plant was totally destroyed by fire and never rebuilt. Mr. Meacham then retired from business, and his brother removed to Wisconsin. About 1827 Mr. Meacham married Hannah Patterson, a daughter of Moses and Hannah (Allen) Patter- son, the former named being a prominent farmer of Londonderry, Vermont, where he was familiar- ly known as Captain Moses Patterson. Four chil- dren were born to Mr. and Mrs. Meacham, name- ly: Pulaski, engaged in farming in Benson, Ver- mont; Rollin, for many years engaged in mer- cantile pursuits in Pittsford, Vermont, where he died in October, 1889, leaving a wife and two daughters; Jeanette, widow of Captain William B. Robinson, who was a merchant in Troy, New York, and a descendant of the old Governor Rob- inson and of the Deweys; and Ozro. Alanson Meacham died in 1875, his wife having previously died in 1869.

Ozro Meacham, born August 28, 1831, ac- quired both a common school and academic edu- cation in Brandon, and at the age of fourteen years began his business career by serving as a clerk in Pittsford for one year. Later he acted in the same capacity for E. J. Bliss, a general merchant in Brandon, remaining in his employ until 1855, when he purchased the business, which he conducted for two years, and at the expiration of this period of time he disposed of it to his ad- vantage, and turned his attention to farming for a few years. In 1861 he established his present business, in the building now occupied by the

Grownacham

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THE STATE OF VERMONT.

Brandon National Bank, and six years later oc- cupied a store in the Simmons block, which was destroyed by fire in 1889. The block was re- built the same year, and in 1890 Mr. Meacham returned to his present extensive and brilliantly lighted store; the block is now the property of T. B. Smith estate, and is one of the most de- sirable for business purposes in Brandon.

Politically Mr. Meacham is a Democrat. He was elected to serve as first selectman of the town in 1880, holding this office from 1881 to 1884, and again in 1886, 1901 and 1902. During the. year 1886 of his administration, he participated in the erection and dedication of the fine soldiers' monu- ment now standing in a conspicuous location in Brandon. He also served in the state legislature during the years 1882 and 1883, was town agent, or legal adviser, for several years, and occupied the position of town auditor, and acted as justice of the peace for many years. He has several times been a candidate for state senator, county judge and presidential elector, but has suffered defeat with his party. Fraternally he is a Mason of high degree, being master of St. Paul's Lodge No. 25, F. & A. M., for thirteen years out of the first twenty-five years of his membership in the order. He was grand master of the Grand Lodge of Vermont for two years, 1883-84, and is a life member of the Grand Lodge and of the Grand Royal Arch Chapter.

On August 14, 1862, Mr. Meacham enlisted as a private in the Allen Grays, known as Com- pany G, one of the ten companies of the Twelfth Regiment of the Second Vermont Brigade, nine months' men. He served during the term of his enlistment and participated in all the marches and campaigns of the company, ending at Get- tysburg, July 4, 1863, serving as fourth sergeant and promoted later to first sergeant, being mus- tered out of the service at Brattleboro, July 14, 1863. He is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, having acted in the capacity of quarter- master of C. J. Ormsbee Post No. 18, from its organization up to the year 1896, a period of twenty-five years, and for a number of years to the present time he has been one of the trustees of the Vermont Soldiers' Home.

On November 1, 1854, Mr. Meacham mar- ried Mary Adelia Lincoln, who died April 12, 1900. She was the daughter of Ward M. and

Sarah Amindia (Benson) Lincoln, the former named being a prominent farmer and sheep- breeder of Brandon, Vermont. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Meacham were: Ida Rebecca, who became the wife of Carlton R. Fish, of Cam- bridge, Massachusetts, a dealer in electric sup- plies in Boston, and their children were Ozro Meacham, Carleton, . Neale, Bryan Neville, Charles Rittenhouse, and one daughter, Char- lotte Lincoln; Eva, who married Thomas W. Rogers, a builder, of Washington city; Charles O., deceased, who was formerly in business with his father; Mary, who became the wife of Dr. Charles H. Walker, a physician in New York city; Sarah Meacham, who received her educa- tion in Brandon, Vermont. For several years Sarah was successfully engaged as a school teach- er in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Since the death of her mother she has looked after the household of her father. Mr. Meacham is the oldest in business of any man now in Brandon. In affairs both in public life and business matters he has conducted himself in a highly commendable man- ner, and enjoys the confidence and esteem of all his fellow citizens.

THE WHITCOMB FAMILY OF CAVEN- DISH.

Among the names of the grantees in the first charter of the town of Cavendish-the New Hampshire document given by Benning Went- worth, October 12, 1761,-that of Benjamin Whetcomb stands second. It is probable that neither Benjamin nor any of his immediate de- scendants ever settled within the limits of the town. He appears to have been a resident of Lunenburg, Massachusetts, or some place in that vicinity, for at the first meeting of the proprietors of the town of Cavendish, held at the inn of Captain Joshua Hunt (or Hutchins) in Lunen- burg, on November 8, 1761, the records show that Captain Benjamin Whetcomb was elected mod- erator, and he served in like capacity at subse- quent proprietors' meetings held in the same place on April 7, and December 14, 1762. At the sec- ond meeting he was elected chairman of a com- mittee of five to make arrangements for a survey of the new township, which duty was apparently discharged, as at the third meeting he was voted

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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 69

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