|
|
|
|
Providence: Published by Henry R. Caufield
Biographies of Prominent Citizens.Note: A few more pages of biographies were added to the previous alphabetized biographies (pp. 486-500).
p. 231 - 232.
ADAMS, John A., the son of Ezra and Susan (Aylsworth), was born in North Kingstown, R.I., June 20, 1815, and died at Central Falls, R.I., May 24, 1892. When seven years of age his father, who was a seafaring man, died on the Island of Trinidad, without leaving any means for the support of his family. Under these circumstances, John was forced to seek employment at an early age, and from his twelfth to his seventeenth year worked on a farm, devoting his spare time to education, and availing himself of all the instruction he could secure in the neighborhood. In 1832 he removed to Franklin, Mass., and was employed in a factory store as clerk for one year. When eighteen years of age he obtained work as an operative in a factory and was steadily promoted until he became overseer. In 1837 he removed to Central Falls, where his sagacity and skill attracted the attention of a capitalist with whom he formed a co-partnership in 1842 for the manufacture of yarns and thread under the firm of Willard & Adams. At the expiration of three years the partnership was dissolved, and Mr. Adams became associated with Joseph Wood and others in the manufacture of cotton goods. In 1848, after the death of two partners, the business was continued in the name of Wood & Adams. In 1863 these gentlemen sold their mill and privilege to the Pawtucket Hair Cloth Company. They afterwards succeeded to the business previously carried on by Rufus J. Stafford, and, in conjunction with other stockholders, organized the Stafford Manufacturing Company. During Mr. Wood's life, Mr. Adams acted as agent for the corporation, and part of the time as president. On Mr. Wood's death in 1873, Mr. Adams being the only active stock-holder assumed, with his other duties, those of treasurer, and held these offices until his death. Mr. Adams was interested in other establishments, and intimately associated in business undertakings with prominent merchants and manufacturers of Providence. For many years he was a trustee of the Franklin Savings Bank and a director of the Slater National Bank, Pawtucket. He served six years as a member of the town council of Lincoln, three years of which time he was its president, and frequently represented the town in both branches of the General Assembly. For many years he was a school trustee. From 1848 until his death he was a member of the Central Falls Congregational church. He was married in 1836 to Sally M., daughter of Nathan and Anna Crowell of Yarmouth, Mass. They had eight children, only two of whom, John F., and Stephen L., are living. Their oldest son, Albert E., was in the Union Army during the late war, and died at home from disease contracted in the service.
p. 232.ADAMS, John F., the second child of John and Sally (Crowell) Adams, was born in Central Falls, R. I., Dec. 17, 1838. He attended the grammar school of his native place, and was graduated from the Pawtucket high school. His first occupation was that of clerk in the Slater National Bank of Pawtucket, and then he became a bookkeeper for the Allendale Company of Providence. Returning to Pawtucket in 1862, he entered into partnership with a Mr. Randall for the manufacture of cotton goods under the firm name of Adams & Randall. In 1864 he purchased the Lanesville Manufacturing Company's plant and property at Lanesville, Mass., and devoted much time to its development. The name of the village has since been changed to Adamsville by a popular vote, in recognition of the many services rendered to it by Mr. Adams. He succeeded his father as president and agent of the Stafford Manufacturing Company, which positions he now holds. Like his father he is deeply interested in public affairs, and has served the people in various positions. He was auditor, and member of the town council of Pawtucket before and for two years after the consolidation, was a member of the board of aldermen in 1892 and 1893, and served nine years on the school board. Mr. Adams is a 32d degree Mason, a member of Barney Merry Lodge, Pawtucket Royal Arch Chapter, Pawtucket Council, Holy Sepulchre Commandery, K. T., and past grand master of the Grand Council of Rhode Island. He is a Republican, a member of the Pawtucket Business Men's Association, and of the Rhode Island Historical Society. He attends the Pawtucket Congregational Church. He is a skillful musician, plays both the organ and piano, has made compositions of merit, has been musical director for twenty-five years of the church choir, and has held like positions in Central Falls and Providence. Dec. 28, 1862, he was married to Kate J., oldest daughter of Rufus J. Stafford of Central Falls, by which union he has four children: Rufus S., b. Sept. 20, 1866; Mary E., b. Feb. 4, 1870; Herbert M., b. Nov. 10, 1872; John H., b Feb. 22, 1876.
p. 232 - 233.ADAMSON, Edward, the third child of John and Catherine (Moss) Adamson was born in Lancashire, England, Dec. 21, 1842. He received his education in the schools of his native town and when fourteen years of age was apprenticed to a reed harness maker at Preston, where he remained for eleven years. In 1867, believing that the United States offered a better field for advancement, he came to Providence, R. I., and became manager for the Providence Reed & Harness Company. He then went to Danielsonville, Conn., but returned to the Providence company, and managed the business until 1879, when he accepted the position of manager of the loom reed department of Myron Fish & Co., at Valley Falls. While connected with this firm he greatly improved both the design and method of manufacturing loom reed, for which he secured a patent. In 1883 he organized the Excelsior Loom Reed Company, for the manufacture of loom reeds. The venture proved successful and the proportions of the business has steadily increased. The works are located at 64 Broad street. Mr. Adamson was married to Ellen Worden of Lancashire, England, Aug. 4, 1863, and has six children: Kate, b. July 12, 1864; Joseph, b. Dec. 24, 1866; Albert, b. Danielsonville, Conn., April 14, 1870; Mary, b. Danielsonville, Conn., Dec. 22, 1872; Celia, b. Providence, July 4, 1876; and Gertrude (deceased), b. Valley Falls, Dec. 23, 1878. The oldest son, Joseph, is the superintendent of the mechanical department in the loom reed works.
illustration on page 233: photo of Edward Adamson, Loom Reed Manufacturer.
p. 233.ANDERTON, James, the oldest child of Benjamin and Annie (Hyde) Anderton, was born in Pawtucket, Feb. 1, 1868. His parents were natives of England, but came to this country when young children. He attended the Pawtucket public schools until he was fourteen years old, and was then apprenticed to learn the carpenter's trade. In 1890 he established himself in business as a contractor and builder, and in 1893 with others organized the Home Building Company of Pawtucket, of which corporation he is now superintendent. In politics Mr. Anderton is a Republican. He is a member of Enterprise Lodge, I. O. O. F.; Samuel Slater Lodge, Sons of St. George, and Moshassuck Tribe of Red Men. Mr. Anderton was married to Annie Farrow of Pawtucket, May 23, 1888, and they have four children, Benjamin Albert, b. March 4, 1889; Alice, b. May 22, 1891; Annie, b. April 16, 1893; and Albert H., b. March 16, 1895.
ANDERTON, JOSEPH, son of John and Sarah (Wilkinson) Anderton, was born in Pawtucket in 1846. For many generations the family lived in Sabden, Lancashire, England. The father of Joseph was a dyer in the textile mills owned by Richard Cobden, the great English free trade advocate, but he came to the United States in the '40's, and went to work in the Manchester printworks near the present village of Saylesville, which were then conducted by Theodore Scroeder. He shortly after bought a farm in the northeastern part of Pawtucket, adjoining the present Memorial park, and carried it on for the balance of his life. Joseph worked alternately on the farm and at the Dunnell printworks. In 1866 he learned the trade of a carpenter with Lewin, Kenyon & Drown. He then worked as a journeyman for French & McKenzie of Providence for six years, when he retired and lived quietly on the old homestead farm for several years. May 6, 1881, he was engaged by W. F. & F. C. Sayles as a carpenter, and has remained with that firm ever since. He now has charge of the general construction of repairs and implements at the works. Many of the new additions have been constructed under his direction and he has seen the works grow from one small building to their present mammoth proportions. Mr. Anderton is a Republican. He was chosen to the city council from the third ward in 1891, was elected a member of the board of tax assessors in 1895 and still holds the position. He was married in 1871 to Mary Leferge of Dobb's Ferry, N. V., [N. Y.??], and they have three children: George C., now a bookkeeper in Providence; Ellery F., student and Laura W.
p. 234.ANDREW, James Harrison, was born in Providence, Feb. 14, 1835, is a son of John and Ann (Harrison) Andrew, and the fourth child in a family of five. His grandmother on his father's side was a friend and companion of Robert Burns the poet, and Fales mill at Ayer, of which his grandfather was proprietor, is mentioned in one of Burns' poems. His father, John Andrew, was born in Ayrshire, Scotland, in 1804, and died in Providence in 1846, came to the United States about 1826, and settled in New York city, where he only remained a short time. He then came to Providence and started in the hardware business. During the Dorr war he was an active supporter of the popular cause, planted a cannon on Constitution hill to defend the interests of the Dorrites, and was one of those arrested and imprisoned for taking part in the affair. He married Ann Harrison, who was born in London, England, in 1810, and died at the house of her son James H., at Central Falls, Jan. 15, 1890. James H. received his education in the public schools of Providence. In 1850 he went to work for the Providence Steam & Gas Pipe Company, and remained until 1857, when he came to Pawtucket and assumed charge of the manufacturing department of the Pawtucket Gas Company. He remained in this position until 1866 when he associated himself with Robert Alexander on Mill street in the steam and gas piping business. In 1871 he purchased Mr. Alexander's interest, and took the name of the Pawtucket Steam & Gas Pipe Co. June, 1890, the company was incorporated and still carries on business at the old location, 32 East avenue. Mr. Andrew has been president since the organization. He is a Republican, and has taken an active interest in local affairs in Central Falls, where he lives. He is a member of the Board of Firewards of the town of Lincoln for twenty years, and was its president for eight years; was one of the town council for seven years, and president two years; and was sewer commissioner for two years. He was one of the committee of seven which prepared the act incorporating the city of Central Falls. Mr. Andrew is a Universalist in religion. He is a Free Mason, a Knight Templar, is a member of the Mystic Shrine, Knights of Pythias, Knights of Honor, and of the American Mechanics. Jan. 24, 1866, he married Robie A. Fales of Central Falls, and three children are the issue of the union, - James Everett, Maud F. and Marie E.
Illustration on page 234: Photo: James H. Andrew, President, Pawtucket Steam & Gas Pipe Co.
p. 234 - 235.ANDREW, James Everett, was born in Central Falls, June 23, 1868. He attended the public schools of his native place until he was fourteen years old, when he spent one year in Bryant & Stratton Business College, Providence. He then worked six years as stenographer for W. F. & F. C. Sayles, and at the end of that period entered the employment of the Pawtucket Steam & Gas Pipe Co. When this concern was incorporated in 1890 he was given an interest in the corporation, and became secretary, which position he still holds. He is a Republican and has held the position of city auditor of Central Falls since the place became a city in 1895. Mr. Andrew is a member of Barney Merry Lodge; Pawtucket Royal Arch Chapter, No. 4, in which he at present holds the office of captain of the host; Pawtucket Council, Royal and Select Masters, in which he is now deputy master; Holy Sepulchre Commandery; Providence Consistory; and Palestine Temple, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He was assistant clerk in the old volunteer Pacific Engine Company until its organization as a paid department. Upon the formation of the Central Falls Veteran Firemen's Association he was elected its first secretary and was successively reelected three times. He is a member of the Lincoln Republican club and the Forest club of Central Falls and of the Fallstaff club of Providence. He was married to Mary J. Booth of Central Falls, and two children are the issue of the union, John Percival, b. Nov. 9, 1891, and Madalane Frances, b. Sept. 30, 1895.
Illustration on page 234: Photo, J. Everett Andrew, Secretary, Pawtucket Steam & Gas Pipe Co.
p. 235.ANGELL, Stephen Dexter, the son of Cyrus and Sabra W. (Dexter) Angell, was born Nov. 3, 1842, in Cumberland, near the village of Lonsdale, on what is known as the Angell farm. He attended the public schools of Lonsdale until he was ten years old, when he went with his parents to Mendon, Mass., and lived there on a farm until he was fourteen. He then left home, and went to live with Johnson Parkman, a retired cotton merchant, on his small farm at Milford, Mass. He was married to Mr. Parkman's daughter Mary E., in 1863, and continued to live in Milford until 1880, when he returned to Lonsdale and became a clerk in the general store of Baylies Bourne, the husband of his father's sister Mahala. Mr. Bourne sold out the grocery part of the business, but continued to conduct the dry goods and other departments. For a number of years, on account of the age and infirmities of Mr. Bourne, the business was managed by Mr. Angell, and on the death of Mr. Bourne he purchased the store from the heirs and has since carried it on. He has developed the business, carries on a large and well chosen stock of dry and fancy goods, boots, shoes, rubbers, furniture, etc., and employs five salespeople. Mr. Angell is politics is a Republican. He is a member of Christ Episcopal Church, Lonsdale, and belongs to the Free Masons. He is a descendant in the seventh generation from Thomas Angell, one of Roger Williams' five companions, who came in a canoe from Seekonk to settle Providence in 1636. Thomas Angell is supposed to have been under age when he came to America and to have been at first under the guardianship of Roger Williams and a member of his household. He, however, in common with the other first settlers received a 'home lot' of six acres, and this lot was a part of the land on which the First Baptist church in Providence now stands. He had two sons and five daughters, and died in 1690. Thomas Angell's descendants have always been numerous in Rhode Island. They have been a strong, powerful race physically. Most of them have been farmers and seafaring men, and many have been distinguished.
p. 235 - 236.ARNOLD, Alexander Streeter, editor and publisher of the 'Weekly Journal' of Central Falls, now residing in Valley Falls, R. I., was born Sept. 30, 1829, in Smithfield, about two miles south of Woonsocket. He is the son of Dr. Seth and Belinda (Streeter) Arnold. In 1858 he was married to Eleanor J. Pierce of Woonsocket. At the age of sixteen he left school and worked at wood turning; but he was not fitted for the trade, and, after a year's attendance at the Suffield seminary, taught school a couple of years. At the age of twenty-four he entered the People's Bank of Pawtucket, where he was employed ten years as bookkeeper, when he purchased the so-called Elsbree stable, but soon sold out and entered the employ of the Pawtucket Hair Cloth Co., where he remained eleven years, five as bookkeeper and six as superintendent, at the end of which period his health became so impaired that he despaired of recovery and resigned his position, and for several years was unable to engage in any continuous active labor. Mr. Arnold had removed to Valley Falls for the purpose of starting a Universalist mission, which was inaugurated, in April, 1860. The result is a successful church, also a successful school, of which he has been superintendent from its commencement thirty years ago. The parish owns a church edifice especially adapted to the needs of the members. Mr. Arnold is the author of several books. His 'Children's Catechism' has reached a sale of 15,000. His first story books were 'Uncle Timothy Taber', and 'Benson Family', both of which met with a ready sale and were soon out of print. His next book, 'Henry Lovell', a temperance story, met with a larger sale, while his late story, 'Building to Win', published by James H. Earle, Boston, bids fair to double the sale of the former three.
p. 236.ARNOLD, H. M. & Son. -- The hack, livery and boarding stable, corner of Summer and North Union streets, is the largest establishment of its kind in Pawtucket. The building belongs to the firm of H. M. Arnold & Son, is a large brick structure, contains 176 stalls, and was first occupied April 12, 1892. Henry M. Arnold started in the livery stable business in 1865 on the east side. In 1871 he built a stable on Broad street between the Benedict house and the location of the present Taylor building, which he occupied until his removal to the firm's present quarters. His son Frank H. is now a member of the firm and is the active manager of the business.
Illustrations on page 236: separate photos of Henry M. Arnold and Frank H. Arnold.
p. 236 - 239.ARNOLD, Olney. The name of Arnold is one of the most ancient known in history. Thomas Arnold, the first American ancestor of Olney Arnold was born in 1599 in Cheselbourne, Dorsetshire, England, and came to America in the ship 'Plain Joan'. He settled in Watertown, Mass., in 1635, where he married Phebe Parkhurst. Twenty-six years afterwards, in 1661, he came to Providence and bought land. As he possessed talents which commanded the respect of his fellow-citizens, he was chosen for several years a member of the General Assembly. His son Richard Arnold was speaker of the House of Deputies; he was also one of the Council of Sir Edmund Andros. John Arnold, son of Richard, was the first president of the Smithfield town council. In religion a Quaker, he gave money and land to build two meeting houses; one was at the northerly, the other at the southerly end of his farm, and that was so extensive that they were nine miles apart. One was reared at what was called the 'Bank Village', the other near the 'Butterfly Factory'. The grandson of John Arnold was Nathan, who was the captain of a military company from Cumberland during the war of the revolution. He lost his life in consequence of exposure, after being wounded at the battle of Rhode Island, which took place on Aug. 29, 1778. Olney Arnold is in direct descent from William Arnold, half brother of Thomas Arnold, one of the thirteen original proprietors of the Providence Plantations; his name stands second in the deed from Roger Williams to the Providence proprietors. He is also descended from William Carpenter, Thomas Olney and Richard Waterman, three of the original proprietors of Providence Plantations. Worthy founders of a new commonwealth, every one of them represented the town in the General Assembly. They were also for several years members of the governor's council. But these do no exhaust the list of Olney Arnold's ancestors. He can claim also descent from Richard Carder, another representative of Providence in the General Assembly, and from Thomas Angell, who accompanied Roger Williams when he landed at Slate Rock in 1636; Rev. Pardon Tillinghast, pastor of the First Baptist church in Providence for several years; Edward Smith of Newport, a member of the governor's council; Benjamin Smith, another of the governor's council, and a deputy to the General Assembly; Edward Inman, a commissioner and deputy to the General Court; Roger Mowry; and John Johnson of Roxbury, general of the militia for many years, surveyor general of all arms and ammunition, chairman of the committee on war, and deputy to the Plymouth Colony Court for twenty-one years. The grandparents of Olney Arnold on his mother's side were Jonathan and Patience Mason, both descendants from Sampson Mason of Rehoboth, through the Rev. Pelatiah, Charles and Benjamin Mason. Jonathan Mason was a farmer in Cumberland and a member of the town council. Olney Arnold is descended from many other lines of first comers who have helped to make Rhode Island history.
Olney Arnold was born at Newton, Mass., Jan. 17, 1822, and is a son of Seth and Belinda Mason (Streeter) Arnold. He was educated and prepared to enter college by the noted teacher James Bushee. Mr. Bushee has an academy at 'Bank Village', Smithfield. His pupil, however, instead of entering college, engaged in mercantile pursuits for a time, and then accepted an appointment as cashier of a bank in Woonsocket. In 1853 he received a proffer of the cashiership of the People's Bank at Pawtucket, and removed to that town. His talents were soon appreciated by his new fellow citizens and he found scope for them in developing the industrial and financial capabilities of the place. His ability was recognized in other towns and cities, for in 1858 when the Bank of Mutual Redemption was started in Boston he was invited to assume the office of cashier, but so strong a pressure was brought to bear on him to remain in Pawtucket, that he declined the flattering offer to remove from the state. Watchful of the financial interests of his associates, he was alert to organize the First National Bank in Pawtucket, in 1863, when the National Banking law went into effect. In 1865 the People's Bank was merged in the First National bank, and ten years afterwards he became president of the institution. This office he still holds, and his administration of these united banks has been so successful that the earnings have averaged over twelve per cent, annually for upwards of forty years. He has, meanwhile, been treasurer of the Providence County Savings Bank. He has had trust upon him also the management of numerous trusts and the care of many estates, and has been treasurer, director and trustee of many corporations and institutions. In this unambiguous manner his associates and the public at large have expressed their conviction of his capabilities and trustworthiness.
Pawtucket had for years two leading branches of industry. In the middle of the seventeenth century Joseph Jenks set up a forge and established iron works. Near the close of the eighteenth century Samuel Slater began the spinning of cotton by power, and till the middle of the present century these remained the leading industries of the place. But the cotton business had been subject to special reverses, and when that was prostrate the town was crippled. Her enterprising sons therefore desired to diversify the business so that if cotton or iron manufacturing were depressed the town should not be improvished or reducted in population. David Ryder, Alfred H. Littlefield, and a few others conceived the thought of acclimating the manufacture of hair seating, and Mr. Arnold, anxious to increase the business of the place, cheerfully afforded his aid in the enterprise. It was very successful. The men named encouraged a skillful inventor to devise various contrivances which made the weaving of haircloth a new business. The American Hair Cloth Co. of Central Falls is the vigorous offspring of their faith, forecast and untiring energy, and is the successor of the Pawtucket Hair Cloth Co. From the beginning of the enterprise Mr. Arnold has been treasurer of the company. He organized the Pawtucket Electric Light Co. He has also been for years a director of the Cumberland Mills Co. and of the Dexter Yarn Co., and is interested in many other corporations.
Mr. Arnold has had a very active political career. April 5, 1848, when a young man of 26 years, he was elected a representative to the Rhode Island legislature from the town of Cumberland, and was re-elected the two following years. Soon after his removal to Pawtucket he was elected president of the North Providence town council, and when the west side village became part of Pawtucket he was elected president of the council of the enlarged town. From 1851 to 1853 he was state railroad commissioner. In the town meetings of Cumberland, North Providence and Pawtucket he presided on many occasions as moderator. He served as collector and treasurer of school district No. 19 in Cumberland, and also of school district No. 1 in Pawtucket; was treasurer of North Providence; was one of the committee to build the Pawtucket town hall in 1871; was chairman of the water commission of Pawtucket 1874-5; member of the water commission 1885 to 1895 inclusive; and has also been an auctioneer and notary public in the three towns, and in the city of Pawtucket. June 15, 1881, he was elected state senator from Pawtucket, and re-elected in 1882 and 1883. During his term as senator he was a member of the judiciary committee and also served on the committees on finance, corporations and militia. He was one of the commission appointed on the old State Prison, April 28, 1883, and other two members being Royal C. Taft and Lucius D. Davis. May 12, 1890 he was appointed by Gov. H. W. Ladd one of the commissioners to erect the new State House in Providence. In the efforts to establish municipal water works and the fire alarm system in Pawtucket, he was very active.
From his youth Mr. Arnold has been interested in the state militia and has held every office up to major general. During the war of the rebellion he was indefatigable in organizing companies, was commissioner for the national government and superintendent of the draft for Rhode Island. He is an honorary member of the First and Second Regiment Veteran Associations, and also of Slocum Post. He has been a member of the Sons of the American Revolution since Feb. 1, 1890. He has been a Free Mason since April 21, 1855, when he became a member of Morning Star Lodge, Woonsocket, and now belongs to the Royal Arch Chapter, the Council of Royal and Select Masters, and Holy Sepulchre Commandery.
In politics General Arnold is a Democrat, and has been for years a leader of the party in the state of Rhode Island. In religion he is a Universalist. In 1856 he united with the High Street Universalist church in Pawtucket, and has long been a trustee of the Rhode Island State Convention of that denomination and treasurer of its organization. His monetary contributions to his church and denomination have been very large but he considers they were the best investments he ever made. He has also been a generous contributor to Dean Academy, Franklin, Mass., and he endowed the 'Arnold Observatory' at that institution in 1882. In private benevolence General Arnold has ministered to the necessities of many deserving persons, frequently making the pastor of his church his almoner; but he also has distributed with great discrimination large sums directly to the recipients.
With the wealth that has come to him through his energy and financial ability, General Arnold has been able to cultivate and indulge the artistic tastes which he possesses in a marked degree. Hanging on the walls of the rooms of his beautiful mansion on Broad street are many fine and rare paintings. Among these are several celebrated works of art, namely: Oswald Achenback's 'Tomb of Cecelia Mettella'; Sophus Jacobson's 'Moonlight on the Norwegian Coast'; a copy of Raphael's 'Madonna della Candelabra'; Salentin's 'Devotion'; the original of 'Lady Washington's Reception', from which many engravings have been made; 'Greek Water Carrier'; 'Autumn', by Robie; 'One of the Saints', by an old master, and many other rare and valuable works.
In 1844 General Arnold was married to Phebe Dudley, of Dudley, Mass., a descendant of Paul Dudley. After nearly twenty years of happy marital life, Mrs. Arnold became seriously ill, but her life was prolonged many years by her patience and faith; her sufferings were mitigated by the sympathy of friends and in a special manner by the watchful attention and unsleeping care of her husband. His devotion and solicitude were so marked as to kindle the admiration of every beholder. Mrs. Arnold died March 6, 1895. A true gentleman in every act of is life, General Arnold has fulfilled the maxim of Goethe, 'to do the duty that lies nearest you', and it is a just eulogy to say that his life from childhood has been marked by devotion, magnanimity, faithfulness, sweetness and ability.
p. 239.ARNOLD, Preserved, the son of Preserved and Betsy (Whipple) Arnold, was born in Smithfield, June 26, 1828. He is descended in the seventh generation from Thomas Arnold, who settled in the valley of the Moshassuck river, north of the present village of Saylesville. Here, late in the seventeenth century, Eleazer, a son of Thomas, built a stone-end chimney house which is still standing on Great Road, so called, half a mile or more north of Saylesville. This house when it was built was probably the most elegant residence in the northern part of the Colony of Rhode Island. It is two stories in height and is heavily timbered. On three sides the spaces between the studs were originally filled in the brick or tile, in order to make the dwelling bullet-proof in case of an Indian attack. At various times it has been altered over and modernized, the principal change being the addition of the lean-to at the rear. Its present dimensions are about thirty by thirty-three feet, two stories high in front and one in the rear, the front eaves being sixteen feet and the rear between eight and nine feet from the ground. Preserved Arnold is a direct descendant of Eleazer in the female line. His paternal line of descent is: Thomas, Richard, Thomas, Job, Oliver, and Preserved, his father. Preserved remained at home until he was 21 years old. In 1882 he returned to his ancestral home in Lincoln and has since carried on the extensive farm, which has reached a high state of cultivation, having been 200 years under tiltage by members of the Arnold family. Mr. Arnold is a Republican. He attends the Episcopal church of Lonsdale. He was married in 1851 to Annie L. Harris of Pawtucket. Two children were born to them: Charles Whipple and Annie Lazell, who are now deceased.
p. 239 - 240.ARNOLD, Seth, son of Nathan and Esther (Darling) Arnold, was born in Cumberland, R. I., Feb. 26, 1799. He was a descendant of Thomas Arnold, who came from Dorset, England in 1635. Thomas first settled in Watertown, Mass., but came to Providence Oct. 17, 1661. His son Richard was the first settler at Woonsocket and his grandson John built the first framed house in 1711. John also erected a grist mill, which was located on the rocks below the falls. This mill was carried away during the flood of 1807, but was soon rebuilt. John's grandson, Captain Nathan Arnold, was a soldier in the revolution. He commanded a company of minute-men in the battle of Rhode Island, and died soon after from injuries received in that engagement. His son Nathan, father of Seth Arnold, was born in 1766, and died in 1812. He married Esther, daughter of Samuel Darling. Samuel lived to be ninety-five years old and his daughter Esther, mother of Seth Arnold, lacked a few months of one hundred years when she died in 1864. Seth Arnold developed considerable mechanical skill in his youth, and at an early age became interested in the manufacture of cotton goods. About the year 1840 he became proprietor of certain patent medicines, and in 1872 the business was incorporated under the name of 'The Seth Arnold Medical Corporation' and has been successfully carried on under that name up to the present time. Mr. Arnold was twice married and was the father of eight children, who survive him. He lived to the age of 84, and died Oct. 31, 1883. He lived a quiet life, declining public office, and in his old age was highly regarded in the community where he lived for his genial character and integrity.
facing page 238: illustration: Dr. Seth Arnold
p. 240.ADAMS, Thornton Henry, is of Scotch extraction. His grandfather, William Adams, conducted a large grocery store on the corner of Main street and Park place, Pawtucket, and lived in a house which occupied the site of the present railroad station. His father, William T. Adams, was prominent in commercial and public affairs in North Providence; for many years he was a successful coal dealer; a member of the firms of J. S. Thornton & Co. and William T. Adams & Son; was a member of the town council of North Providence and of the first town council of Pawtucket, and represented the town in the General Assembly. He was a man of sterling character and was beloved by those who knew him for the kindliness of his disposition. He died on March 29, 1887. Charles P. Adams, a brother to William T., was born in Pawtucket in 1830. He was a well known dealer in real estate, and was noted for his liberal opinions and his sympathy for reform movements. He died in Pawtucket, Jan. 17, 1895. Robert, another brother, was a conductor on the 'Underground Railroad', a very active abolitionist and reformer, and at an advanced age is now living in Fall River, where for many years he has conducted a bookstore. William Adams and his sons were men of unusual force and character, and were prominent in the abolition and suffrage movements at a time when connection with those causes entailed sacrifices and social ostracism.
Thornton Henry Adams was born in North Providence May 16, 1856, and was the youngest child of William Tindel and Amanda M. (Davis) Adams. He attended the Pawtucket public schools and completed his education in Allen's English and Classical school, West Newton, Mass., in 1873. His first occupation was that of clerk for his father. He afterwards learned the manufacturing jewelers' trade with Howard & Sherable of Providence, leaving there to engage in the grocery business. Mr. Adams is a Republican. He attends the Congregational church on Park place. In fraternal affairs he is actively connected with Union Lodge, No. 10, A. F. and A. M.; Pawtucket Royal Arch Chapter, No. 4; Pawtucket Council, R. and S. M.; Holy Sepulchre Commandery, No. 8; Charles E. Chickering Lodge, K. of P., No. 20; Ossamequin Tribe, No. 4, Improved Order of Red Man; Royal Society of Good Fellows; and the Order of United Workmen. On April 14, 1887, he was married to Lizzie O. Cook of Pawtucket, by which union there is one child, Earl Andrew, born Jan. 11, 1891.
illustration, page 240: photo: Thornton H. Adams, grocer
p. 240 - 241:ASHTON, Daniel Worsley, is of the second generation of his family in America. His father, John W. Ashton, was born in Yorkshire, England, in 1809, and came to this country in 1840. He was active in the philanthropic work of the celebrated Robert Owen, who first advocated and secured the establishment of free day and night schools and public libraries in Great Britain, which contributed so much toward the elevation of the working classes. Mr. Ashton was always interested in co-operation, education and labor reform. The Boston Globe of June 18, 1891, said of him, 'he was almost the double of William E. Gladstone', the great English statesman. He died in Pawtucket in 1891, aged 82 years.
Daniel Worsley Ashton, the first child of John W. and Anna (Worsley) Ashton, was born in Manchester, England, Jan. 6, 1835. He came to this country with his parents when five years of age, and attended the public schools of Pawtucket. He learned the trade of a pattern maker with Danforth L. Peck, boarded with his employer, worked the first year for $25, the second for $30, and the third for $40, and the hours of labor were 'factory time', from thirteen to fifteen hours daily. When he was out of his time he entered into a partnership with Charles A. Luther under the name of Luther & Ashton, to carry on the business of pattern making. This firm was dissolved in 1857, and from that time until 1871 Mr. Ashton operated a shop of his own. He then succeeded the late James Arnold as a manufacturer of cotton machinery on Dexter street, but in 1877 disposed of this business to George W. Payne & Co. Very early in connection with his pattern-making business he started to manufacture cloth stretchers, which industry is now an important one in Pawtucket. In 1877, a favorable opportunity offering, he established himself in the wholesale lumber commission business, which he still conducts. Later he commenced the manufacture of starch and water mangles for printers and bleachers, and in this connection he is known all over the United States and Europe. He has taken an active part in public affairs, and served as sealer of weights and measures before the consolidation of the town of Pawtucket. Sept. 22, 1857, he was married to Julia Ann Arnold of Pawtucket. By this union there were three children: Charles F., b. Sept. 4, 1861; Frank H., b. July 17, 1865; and Julia L., b. May 20, 1868.
p. 241.ATWOOD, Abner, son of Joshua, son of Nathaniel, son of Nathaniel, son of Nathaniel, son of John. The last named was the common ancestor of this family in America and settled in Plymouth, Mass., in 1633, where he married Sarah, daughter of Richard Masterson. He was prominent in the affairs of the town and accumulated considerable property. Many of his descendants have been distinguished in political, business and social life. Abner's ancestor moved to Carver, Mass., at an early date and he was born there, in a house that had sheltered three successive generations of this family. His mother, Hannah Thomas, was a native of Middleboro, Mass. His youth was passed like that of most boys of the time in New England towns. He attended school and helped his father on the farm until he attained his nineteenth year. He then went to Taunton and entered the employ of William Mason & Co., then one of the largest cotton machinery builders in the country, to learn the trade of a machinist. After an experience of five years, he took charge of a section in the works of the Taunton Locomotive Company, remaining until 1858, when he formed a partnership with J. O. Draper, of Bedford, Mass., for the manufacture of soap. In 1862, the firm of Draper and Atwood removed to Pawtucket, and in 1866, upon the death of the junior partner of the firm of R. & G. Cushman, Mr. Atwood was invited by the surviving partner to an interest in the firm and business. Until 1875 the style of the firm was Cushman, Phillips & Co. Mr. Cushman then withdrew and the firm of Atwood, Crawford & Company was formed. In 1890 this company was incorporated under the name of The Atwood, Crawford Co., and Mr. Atwood was elected president, which position he now holds. Mr. Atwood is remarkably vigorous for a man in his 71st year. He is a deacon of the Central Falls Congregational church. In 1851 he married Lydia A. Draper of Attleboro.
p. 241 - 242.AUTHIER, Joseph Misael, was born in St. Charles, Quebec, Canada, Aug. 31, 1844, and is the third child of Louis G., and Honore Guertin, of Beloeil, Canada. He attended the public schools of St. Hilaire, and completed his education at the Granby Academy, Granby, P. Q., and the Normal School at Montreal, Canada. When 16 years of age he commenced the study of law, being admitted to practice as a notary public in 1867. He engaged actively in his profession for five years, but finally concluded to devote all his time to journalism. The opportunities offered in his own country were not encouraging, so he came to the United States in 1872, going direct to Cohoes, N. Y., where he assumed charge of the editorial department of L'Avenir National. In 1876, he established La Patrie Nouvelle, but receiving a tempting offer for its purchase, desposed of it in 1890 and came to Central Falls, R. I., where he commenced the publication of L'Esperance, a semi-weekly paper, which has been successsful from the start. Mr. Authier is an active Republican, and takes a prominent part in the local affairs of Central Falls. He is a member of the school board, and is also one of the board of licence commissioners. He has been married twice, first to Evelina M., daughter of Captain O. Naud, of Sorel, P. Q., Canada, July 29, 1867, and by this union there were three children, Joseph, Evelina and Louis Napoleon. His first wife died, and on Aug. 29, 1882, he was married to Martine Lucie Ducharme of Cohoes, New York.
p. 244:BARKER, Frederick Eugene, is a descendant of one of the oldest families in Rhode Island, and traces his ancestry back to the original settlers of the state. His father, who was born in Providence in 1827, removed to Pawtucket in 1860, was a member of the first city government, and president of the board of aldermen. His maternal grandfather was a prominent figure in state politics and took an active part in the Dorr War, was sheriff of the county and held other important offices. Frederick Eugene was born in Providence, March 31, 1854, and is the second child of Frederick A. and Lucinda E. (Lewis) Barker. He received his education in the public schools of Pawtucket, was graduated from the high school and completed his education at Mowry & Goff's English and Classical school in Providence. In 1871, when seventeen years of age, he entered the employ of Barker, Chadsey & Co., hardware dealers of Providence, where he remained until 1884, when he established a hardware store corner of Main street and East avenue, Pawtucket, under the firm name of F. Eugene Barker & Co. In October, 1891, he removed to 226 Main street, where he is at present located. This business was successful from the start. In politics Mr. Barker is an active Republican and is vice-president of Garfield Club. He is a member of the Business Men's Association and the T. K. Club. May 11, 1880, he was married to Stella F. Smith of Pawtucket, by which union there are two children, Louise, b. Dec. 2, 1886, and Agnes, b. May 22, 1891.
p. 244 - 245.BARKER, Henry, son of Benjamin and Harriet (Foster) Barker, was born in Yorkshire, England, June, 1848. For many generations the Barkers resided in Bradford, England, and the majority of the members of the family were hand and power loom weavers of dress goods. Henry's maternal and paternal grandfathers were old pensioners and fought at Waterloo and in the Peninsula campaigns for fifteen years. His father, Benjamin, came to America in 1863 and was the first of the family to arrive in this country; he settled in Lawrence, Mass., where he worked in the Pacific mills for many years, and died in that city in 1880. Henry attended school in England until he was fourteen years old, when he went to work in the mill with his father and served an apprenticeship to high class weaving. He mastered the business, became an overseer and operated under contract a weaving department for the firm of Wheatersmith, Tankard & Co., Bradford, employing his own help in this undertaking.
In 1870 he came to the United States and settled with his father at Lawrence, Mass., worked for the Pacific mills for ten years, when he was engaged by the Arlington mills to take charge of the weaving. With this latter concern he remained four years, when he was engaged in 1888 by W. F. & F. C. Sayles to take charge of the Lorraine mills' weaving department, which position he now holds. He now has control of 200 hands and is responsible for the weaving of all fabrics manufactured. Mr. Barker is a Republican. In 1891 he was elected a member of the Pawtucket school committee and was chairman in 1895-6. He belongs to Trinity Episcopal church, is a Free Mason and an Odd Fellow. He was married in 1868 in Bradford, England, and now has eight children: Fred., b. in England, and Benjamin, Florence, Henrietta, Mabel, Waldo, Lawrence and Ralph born in Pawtucket.
p. 245.BARNEY, Edward C., the fourth child of Otis H., and Betsey (Short) Barney, was born in Rehoboth, Mass., Aug. 27, 1832. He obtained his education in the public schools of his native town, and worked on the farm until he attained his nineteenth year. Finding this occupation uncongenial he went to Providence, learned the jewelers' trade and worked as a journeyman until his thirty-seventh year when he had accumulated a small capital with the intention of establishing himself in business. In 1869 he came to Pawtucket and opened a grocery store corner of Main and Bayley streets, where he remained for six years, removing to his present location, 694 Main street, in 1875, where he conducts a market and general provision business in connection with his grocery. In politics Mr. Barney is an independent. May 17, 1859, he was married to Mary F. Vars of Pawtucket, by which union there are three children: Mary Della, b. Dec. 10, 1862; Annie C., b. June 9, 1863, and Edna C., b. June 29, 1878. Mr. Barney's father, Otis H., was a ship captain and was born in North Swansea, Mass. He was one of the fourth generation that were born in the same place. His grandmother, Betsey Short, was born in Barrington, R. I., and is a direct descendant of the Scotch family of that name who came to this country with the early colonists and distinguished themselves in the war of independence.
illustration on page 245: photo: Edward C. Barney, grocer.
p. 245 - 246:BAROLET, Louis Phillippe, is the son of Francois Xavier and Henriette (Chenevert) Barolet. The Barolet family lived in the city of Lille, France, for many generations, and the grandparents of Louis P. early in this century sailed for Canada, where Francois was born. They settled near the city of Montreal and engaged in agriculture. Francois was educated in Montreal, was a graduate of Victoria University, and became a leading physician in Montreal. In 1872 he came to Putnam, Conn., and died at Holyoke, Mass., in May, 1894. Louis Phillipppe was born at St. Guillaume, P. Q., in 1861, and received his primary schooling there. He entered Montreal College when ten years of age, and took a classical course. From his sixteenth to his eighteenth year he pursued an English course at our public high school. He then entered Boston Dental College and two years later commenced practice in Putnam, Conn., where he remained four and a half years. He developed great skill in dentistry and secured an excellent patronage. He came to Pawtucket in 1888 and opened an office in the Sheldon building, Main street. He has built up a fine practice and is a thorough dental expert, employing the most modern scientific apparatus. In politics Dr. Barolet is a Republican.
p. 261 - 262:BARRY, James F., the son of Michael and Mary (McKenna) Barry, was born in New York city in 1860. His grandfather David came to New York, June 22, 1826, from Ireland, where for many generations the Barrys were prominent and wealthy; he acquired wealth, became one of the best known men in New York city, and died there at the age of 103. Michael, his son, was a member of the city council of New York from the seventh ward during the administration of Fernando Wood. James F. attended the New York schools until he was eight years old, and the Pawtucket schools until he was eighteen. He then went to Bryant & Stratton's Business College in Providence, for two years, and was graduated in 1880. His first occupation was as bookkeeper for William M. Fisher & Co., jewelry manufacturers, and he also worked in a similar capacity for other makers of jewelry. In 1885 he was appointed assistant postmaster of Pawtucket by President Cleveland. Three years later he resigned to accept a position as clerk in the water works department of the city of Pawtucket, which he held for three years. For the year ending July, 1895, he was business manager of the Pawtucket Post. He then formed a partnership with Frank Esser, under the name of Esser & Barry, for the manufacture of jewelry, which has become a very successful business, with workrooms in the Kent & Stanley building, Providence. The concern in now the largest producer of white stone jewelry in America. About 100 persons are employed, and silver specialties are also turned out. The products are facsimiles of real diamonds in fine settings, and 100,000 gross of stones are imported by the firm each year. This is about fifty per cent of the stones that are brought into Rhode Island. Mr. Esser gives his attention to the buying. Mr. Barry manages the selling, and on that account is obliged to travel considerably. The firm has an office in New York, employs several traveling salesmen, makes all grades of jewelry, and uses gold, rolled gold and electroplate settings.
Mr. Barry is a Democrat. He was clerk in the east side voting district in the town of Pawtucket the year before it became a city, and was chairman of the delegation from his ward on the city committee. He belongs to the Knights of Columbus, and was one of the organizers of the Aetna Association in 1880.
p. 246:BASTOW, Stuart, the sixth child of Amos and Anna (Priestly) Bastow was born in Leeds, England, Feb. 24, 1872. His father was a machinist in Leeds, who being attracted to the United States by the broad field offered to men of energy and enterprise, came here in 1884. Stuart attended the public schools of native city until he attained his twelfth year, and completed his education at the public schools of Pawtucket in 1886. His first occupation was in the drug store of Mr. McAllister on Dexter street, where he remained for three years. He possessed considerable taste for drawing and designing and this induced him to devote four years to learning sign painting. In 1893 he opened an establishment of his own at 23 Broad street, and has established a large and continually increasing business.
p. 246 - 248:BATES, Frank May, the present treasurer of the city of Pawtucket, was born in Pawtucket, Mass., Aug. 4, 1843, and is the only child of Nahum and Sarah Maria (May) Bates. His father was for 60 years a merchant on the east side, Pawtucket, at the corner of Broadway and Main street; and his grandfather, also named Nahum, was a farmer and wholesale dealer in cattle and live stock in Mendon, Mass. The Bates family for many generations been conspicuous in Mendon, Bridgewater, and other towns of the Old Colony. Through his paternal grandmother Mr. Bates is descended from the Ballous, so long a conspicuous family in northern Rhode Island and in southern and western Massachusetts. On his mother's side he traces his descent to John May, who came from Mayfield, England in 1635 and settled at Roxbury, Mass. His great grandfather May was a prominent man in his day in Massachusetts, was a member of the governor's council, a state senator, and served as colonel in the revolutionary war. His grandfather, Jesse May, was the first lawyer who began to practice that profession in the village of Pawtucket in the town of North Providence. Jesse May's wife was Betsey Marsh, the daughter of Amariah Marsh, who, it is claimed, was the teacher in the first Sunday school established by Samuel Slater, and received one dollar each Sunday for teaching the children the three R's. Other members of this branch of the family have been distinguished. Seth May of Winthrop, Me., was judge of the Maine Supreme Court. Lemuel May of Attleboro, brother of Mr. Bates' maternal grandfather, was commonly known as Squire May, and his son John W. May, who was a classmate of Judge W. W. Blodgett of Pawtucket, was a prominent lawyer, and at one time was district attorney for Suffolk County, Massachusetts.
Mr. Bates' father was born in Mendon, Mass.,. March 6, 1811, and came to Pawtucket in 1832. From 1860 to 1874 he was town treasurer, was a member of the Massachusetts Legislature from 1846 to 1849, and served as selectman for many terms. For a long period, and up to the time of his death, he was a deacon of the First Baptist church, and for many years was superintendent of the Sunday school. He cast his first vote for Henry Clay in 1832, and voted thereafter in ever election, national, state, town or district, which occurred in Pawtucket until his death, the day of the presidential election, Nov. 8, 1892. One of the most prominent members of the Bates family has been Samuel P. Bates, who was state historian and state superintendent of schools in Pennsylvania, and wrote a history of the civil war and a defence of General Hooker's action at the battle of Chancellorsville.
Frank May Bates received his education in the common schools and in the high school of Pawtucket, but did not graduate on account of ill health. He worked for Gorham & Co. and Brown in Providence for two years and he then in 1866 entered into his father's business, and continued therein until his appointment as city treasurer, July, 1891. In 1893, after his father's death, the business was finally closed up. Mr. Bates has always been a Republican. He served on the school committee for two years, during which period he was secretary. From 1879 to 1882 inclusive, he represented Pawtucket in the General Assembly, and for two sessions was chairman of the committee on militia. In 1884 he was delegate at large to the Chicago convention which nominated James G. Blaine for the presidency, and was the only Blaine man from Rhode Island. During the Centenary celebration, Mr. Bates was chief of staff on Military Day, and he delivered the oration Saturday, Oct. 4, 1890 at the dedication of the Collyer monument. He is one of the original members of the Pawtucket Business Men's Association, Feb. 6, 1888, he read a paper before this organization on 'Fires and Insurances' which contained an array of facts and figures of great interest. He has been correspondent for the 'Gazette' and 'Chronicle' and for the 'Daily Times', and accompanied a party of capitalists to Sioux City in this capacity for the 'Daily Times' in 1889. He is a member of the First Baptist church, and was a teacher in its Sunday school for more than thirty years, in this respect following in the footsteps of his great-grandfather, Amariah Marsh. Out of fifty scholars in the class he taught for many years, all have been successful men, except two or three. Mr. Bates is a member of many societies and has been treasurer of nearly all of them. He was for two years treasurer of the Veteran Firemen's Association and for five years treasurer of the Horse Guards, and has been treasurer of the Young People's Society of his church.
In the local militia Mr. Bates was for many years very active. He joined the Pawtucket Horse Guards in 1862, during the next ten years passed through all grades, and was captain in 1878-9. In 1885 he was appointed by Governor Brown a member of his staff with the rank of colonel, and as such represented Rhode Island on the staff of Gen. Philip H. Sheridan at the dedication of the Washington monument, Feb. 22, 1885. He was married Aug. 22, 1866, to Susan Perry Eddy of East Greenwich, and they had two children: Charles Eddy, b. Aug. 8, 1867, died July 29, 1877; and Sarah May, b. Dec. 3, 1872.
illustration on page 246: photo: Frank May Bates, City Treasurer, Pawtucket.
full page of illustrations, facing page 246: photos of Joseph De Vere Barber, M. D.; Louis H. Beaudy, M. D.; John H. Bennett, M. D.; Thomas T. Berry, undertaker; Edward S. Bowen, treasurer, Newell Coal & Lumber Co.; Edward Barker, jobber in woolen remnants.
p. 248 - 249:BATES, Frederick, son of Whitman and Lucy Ann (Clark) Bates, was born at South Milford, Mass., Aug. 22, 1831. His father moved to Pawtucket with his family in 1836. For one year Frederick went to school at South Mendon, Mass. In Pawtucket he attended the Grove Street Grammar school and the Academy which stood where Stephen F. Fisk's house now is on Main street, and the building is still in existence on Walcott street. He fitted for college at the Lyon & Frieze private school, now the University Grammar school in Providence, and entered Brown University in 1847. On the death of his father in 1849 he left the University and devoted his time to the business, becoming clerk for his uncle Nahum Bates, who continued to run the store. His salary at first as clerk was $115 per year, and this only paid his board. He however soon found a better position in Providence with L. D. Anthony & Co., retailers and wholesalers of fancy goods, where he received $250 per year. In 1853 he, with his brother-in-law, D. T. Chilson, bought out N. Bates & Co., the business founded by his father. They conducted it very successfully under the firm name of Chilson & Bates until 1858 when they admitted to the firm James A. Leckie, one of their clerks. The style then became Chilson, Bates & Co. In 1862 Mr. Bates bought out Mr. Chilson, who died soon after, having been ill for some time before he sold out. The firm then became Bates & Leckie. In 1866 the whole business was sold out and closed. A year later Mr. Bates purchased a stock in Providence with his old partner, but he sold out within a year, on account of ill health. From 1880 to 1883 he was a member of the firm of Linton Bros., but again ill health forced him to retire.
In politics Mr. Bates is a Republican. He was a member of the Pawtucket town council, being the only Republican on the council at that time. In 1856 he was married to Harriet N., daughter of Amos M. Read. They have one child, Adelaide Underwood Bates, who was married to Edward G. Tuttle of New York city, May 31, 1893. Mr. Bates joined the Pawtucket Congregational church in 1856, and has been a member ever since. He was superintendent of the Sunday school in1882-5, was elected trustee April 28, 1862, and is now the senior trustee. He was also a member of the building committee when the present church was constructed in 1868. Since 1883 he has lived a retired life, looking after his real estate interests. He sold out a large portion of his landed estate, which has since been largely built upon. He acquired considerable wealth, is a man of well preserved powers, and is very active. He now resides at the old family home on Walcott street.
p. 249:BATES, Whitman, son of Nahum and Perley (Ballou) Bates, was born March 9, 1805, in Mendon, Mass., and died in Pawtucket, Dec. 12, 1849. Until he was twenty-one years old he lived in his native place, obtained his education there in the district school and worked on his father's farm. When he attained his majority his father gave him a silver dollar which is still in the possession of the family, and sent him out into the world. He went to South Milford, Mass., and became a clerk in a store, saved money, and upon the death of his employer bought the store. In 1835 he sold the store, moved to South Mendon, and opened a hotel which he sold at the end of a year. Coming to Pawtucket he bought out the grocery and dry goods business owned by Alanson Thayer and Ellis Pitcher. The store was situated where the Bates block now is on Broadway. He disposed of the grocery part and conducted the dry goods business until his death in 1849. His brother, Nahum Bates, the father of Frank M. Bates, the present city treasurer, was his partner in this enterprise and the firm was known as W. & N. Bates. The business was very successful, and Mr. Bates became one of the leading and influential citizens of Pawtucket. For many years he was superintendent of the Sunday school of the First Baptist church, and was a member of the building committee when the present edifice was constructed in 1842.
The Bates family is descended from Clement Bates, who sailed from England in 1635 in the ship 'Elizabeth', with his wife, five children and two servants, and settled in Hingham, Mass. They came from Lydd, County of Kent, where their ancestors had lived for two centuries. Whitman Bates is of the sixth generation from Clement, and the line of descent is: Clement, Joshua, Isaac, who settled in Bellingham; Laban, who was a revolutionary soldier and a member of the Massachusetts legislature; Nahum and Whitman.
p. 249 - 250:BAXTER, Frederick Warren, is descended from an old New England family that came from Cape Cod to Pawtucket at an early date. He is the third child of Warren and Carrie M. (Gardner) Baxter, and was born in Pawtucket, March 17, 1861. He attended the public schools until he was fifteen years old. In 1876 he was apprenticed to Charles Rittman to learn the upholstering trade. When his term of apprenticeship had expired he worked for J. A. & A. J. Allen of Central Falls and the Central Falls Furniture Co., who had succeeded that firm. In 1887 he opened an upholstering establishment in the Sheldon block on North Union street. After several removals he settled in 1895 at his present location, 90 Exchange street, where he makes a specialty of manufacturing fine and medium upholstered furniture and hair mattresses and also deals in antique furniture. Mr. Baxter is a Republican, and is a member of the Garfield Club. He has taken an active part in the Knights of Pythias and has occupied several prominent positions in that order. He is also a member of the American Benefit Association. July 10, 1882, he was married to Ruth Frances Winslow of Pawtucket, by which union there are four children: Ernest Winslow, Carry-bell Warren, Ruth Spencer, and Charles Warren.
p. 250:BELLEW, Robert, the fourth child of Patrick and Mary (Chambers) Bellew, was born in Montreal, Canada, May 31, 1846. He attended the public schools of North Becket, Mass., whither his family had removed, until 1862, when he enlisted in Company E, 1st Massachusetts Cavalry. He participated in many of the great battles of the civil war, until his regiment was mustered out of service in 1864. He then went to Boston, to Jackson, Mich., and Chicago, Ill., and in the latter city he worked at tanning for a brother of General Grant. Returning east he worked at his trade near Boston, and also at Attleboro, Mass., and then with Comp & Co., where he remained 15 years. In 1881 in company with William Gould and R. A. Butler he established the Star Tanning Co., now located at 140 Front street. In 1884 he opened a branch store in Philadelphia, but in 1888 owing to the great depression in business he discontinued it. Mr. Bellew attends the Church of the Sacred Heart and is actively identified with the Sunday school, being at present superintendent. He has been a member of the Sacred Heart Temperance Society for the past twenty years. May, 1876, he was married to Mary A. Reilly of Pawtucket, by which union there is one child, Mary A., b. Dec. 6, 1877. Mr. Bellew's father was born in Ireland, Feb. 3, 1815, but came to this country when he was a young man.
p. 250:BENNETT, John Hillman, M. D., was born in New Bedford, Mass., Dec. 12, 1869, and is the son of Samuel R. and Hannah A. (Ryder) Bennett. In the educational institutions of his native city he received his early training, graduating from the grammar and high schools and the Swain Free school. In the latter he was prepared for college. He entered Boston University School of Medicine in 1888 and was graduated in 1891 with the degree of M. D. When in college, in the last year of his studies, he was appointed resident physician of the Comsumptive Home at Roxbury, Mass. In this capacity he gained considerable experience in the treatment of pulmonary diseases. In Newburyport and Dorchester, Mass., after graduation, he attended the patients of two practitioners, during their temporary absence. In the following year he became house surgeon of the Boothby Surgical Hospital, Boston, Mass. In 1893 he commenced practice at Pawtucket, R.I., and at present is the attending physician at the Providence Homeopathic Dispensary and assistant surgeon at the Rhode Island Homeopathic Hospital. Dr. Bennett is a member of the Massachusetts Homeopathic Society, of which he is secretary, the Boston Homeopathic Society, and the Pawtucket Medical Association. He is a member of the Pacific Lodge, 123, I. O. O. F., of New Bedford, Mass., and also of the To Kalon Club of Pawtucket, belongs to the Pawtucket Congregational church, the Y. M. C. A., and is vice president of the Federal Council of the Brotherhood of Andrew and Philip. He is very much interested in music and has made some study of the violin.
p. 250 - 251:BERRY, James B., son of Thomas T. and Sarah R. (Slocum) Berry, was born in Pawtucket, R.I., Nov., 23, 1856. He obtained his education in the public schools, was graduated from the Grove street grammar school under P. E. Bishop, principal, in the spring of 1872, and attended the high school the fall and winter terms following. At the age of sixteen he went to work for his father in the undertaking business and has continued in it ever since. He has never engaged in any other trade. Early in his connection with the business he was stationed at Oak Grove cemetery, but is now in charge of the office and establishment at 7 Walcott street. Mr. Berry is a member of the Church of our Father (Universalist), and belongs to the Knights of Pythias, Charles E. Chickering Lodge. He is also an associate member of the G. A. R. He was married in 1878 to Clara A. Williams, of Seekonk, Mass., daughter of Baylies M. and Mary E. (Radloff) Williams. They have two children: Sadie May, b. 1884, and Inez W., b. 1889.
p. 251:BERRY, Thomas Edward, son of Thomas T. and Sarah R. (Slocum) Berry, was born in Pawtucket in 1865. He went to the public schools until he was sixteen years old, and then attended a private school for a year. He then became a salesman for J. B. Barnaby & Co., of Providence, in the clothing business, and remained in that position seven years, when he joined his father in conducting the undertaking business on Walcott street. In 1896 Mr. Berry was appointed by the city council, superintendent of the Mineral Spring and Oak Grove cemeteries, succeeding his father. In this office he has proved efficient and popular. He was married May 4, 1892, to Ida L. Jenks, daughter of Pardon and Eliza J. Jenks of Pawtucket. They have one child by this union Edith J., b. in Pawtucket. Mr. Berry resides in an artistic colonial residence on North Bend street, which was built in 1894, and is one of the most attractive dwellings in Pawtucket. The house occupies a portion of what was formerly the farm of his maternal grandfather, Samuel Slocum.
p. 251:BERRY, Thomas Thatcher, was born in Pawtucket, April 26, 1834. His father, Capt. Freeman Berry, who was born at Yarmouth, Mass., April 17, 1808, and died at Pawtucket, March 22, 1894, was a seafaring man, and commanded vessels and steamers running to Pawtucket. His mother, Mahala (Phillips) Berry was born in Harwich, Mass., Aug. 26, 1808. Thomas went to school in Pawtucket until he was eighteen years of age. He then learned to be a toolmaker, and followed that occupation for 15 years, up to 1869. In that year he was appointed superintendent of Oak Grove cemetery, where he continued for 26 years. In 1872 he took up the undertaking business, and has since carried it on. Mr. Berry is a member of the High street Universalist church, and belongs to the Rhode Island Universalist Club. He is a member of the New England Undertakers Association, belongs to the Knights of Pythias and was the first president of the Endowment Rank when it was instituted. He is also a member of the Business Men's Association and is one of the Pawtucket Veteran Firemen. In 1856 he was married to Sarah Radloff Slocum of Pawtucket, R. I. Five children have been born to them two of whom survive.
p. 251:BISHOP, Frank, son of Lee H. and Emma J. (Bennett) Bishop, was born in 1864 at Lisbon, Conn. When six years of age his parents moved to Jewett City, Conn., where he attended the common schools. When thirteen years old he went to work in the cotton mills of John F. Slater. At the age of sixteen he took a position in the office of the Ashland Cotton Co., Jewett City, and was assistant bookkeeper until 1885. He then went to Minneapolis, Minn., with the Union Transfer Co., with whom he remained for one year, when he returned east and engaged with the Ashland Cotton Co., Jewett City, Conn., in his former position, where he remained until 1891. In that year he came to Pawtucket and was engaged by the Slater Cotton Co., to take charge of the office. He has charge of all accounts and is confidential clerk of the treasurer. Mr. Bishop belongs to the Park Place Congregational church. He is Past Master of the Mount Vernon Lodge of Masons, and a member of Reliance Lodge, I. O. O. F., of Jewett City. He was married in 1887 to Ella C. Chapman of Jewett City, Conn., and they have had four children: Alice, b. Jewett City, (deceased); Howard, b. Jewett City; Florence, b. Pawtucket; Arnold, b. Pawtucket.
The first American ancestor of the Bishop family settled at Plymouth in the last part of the seventeenth century, and members of the family soon after settled in Eastern Connecticut, where their descendants have since resided.
p. 251 - 252:BLAKE, Francis Nelson, the first child of Ezra N. and Rhoda T. (Bliss) Blake, was born in Wrentham, Mass., June 11, 1853. He attended the public schools of his native town until he attained his sixteen year, and completed his education at the Wrentham Academy. In 1871 he came to Pawtucket and was apprenticed to Stephen R. Bucklin to learn blacksmithing. He served his time and remained with Mr. Bucklin seven years, during which period he saved sufficient money to enable him to start in business for himself. In 1878 he purchased a small shop in the rear of 323 Main street from Henry Luther and did all the work himself. He now occupies a three story building, 40 by 84 feet, built on the same site; it requires twenty men to fill the orders for wagons and carriages, and his business in constantly increasing. In politics Mr. Blake is a Republican. He attends the First Baptist church and is an active and prominent member of the Odd Fellows, American Mechanics, is Past Captain in the Sons of Veterans, and is member and officer of the Order of Red Men. He has filled every chair in the Enterprise Council, American Mechanics. Sept. 5, 1876, he was married to Mary E. Cotton of Pawtucket, by which union there is one child: Rhoda I., b. March 11, 1884. Mr. Blake traces his ancestors back on the maternal side to Noah Bliss, who was one of the thirty-eight men who settled Rehoboth with Rev. Samuel Newman. His father was a farmer and was born in Wrentham, Mass., February, 1823, and died Sept. 12, 1862 from the effects of a gun shot wound received at the second battle of Bull Run while serving in the Union Army.
p. 252:BLISS, Frank Norton, the first child of Francis V. and Sarah Wheaton (Norton) Bliss, was born in Taunton, Mass., May 21, 1853. He attended the public schools until he was sixteen years old, then learned the painter's trade, and in seven years saved enough from his earnings to establish himself in business in 1876. He prospered from the start and now conducts a well established and successful painting and paper hanging business at 86 North Main street. In fraternal affairs he is an Odd Fellow. July, 1891 he was married to Mary A. Rhodes Angell of Pawtucket. His father was born in Rehoboth, Mass., Feb. 28, 1825, and his mother was born in Seekonk, Mass., in 1830.
p. 252 - 253:BLODGETT, Edward Griffin, was born in Pawtucket, Mass., July 21, 1839, and was the fourth child of the Rev. Constantine and Hannah Maria (Dana) Blodgett. His father was for thirty-five years the pastor of the Congregational church, junction of Walcott street and Broadway, and was a man universally loved and respected. The grandfather, Benjamin Blodgett, was a farmer in Vermont, and some of his sons, the older brothers of the Rev. Mr. Blodgett, took part in the war of 1812.
Edward G. Blodgett received his education at the University Grammar School of Providence and at Amherst College, but left before completing his course of study. He then engaged in business for two years, at the end of which time he went to the Hawaiian Islands where he remained six months. From there he went to California, and was a member of the first company of gold seekers that entered Arizona. He remained there until after the war of the rebellion, when he returned to Pawtucket and was employed by the R. D. Mason Co., bleachers and dyers, with whom he remained for about 20 years. While so engaged he also began to manufacture yarn on his own account, and about 1885 he formed a partnership with Edmund W. Orswell under the name of Blodgett & Orswell. The business was incorporated in 1887 as the Blodgett & Orswell Co. The same year the partners started the Pawtucket Dyeing & Bleaching Co., with works at Lebanon, and this business was also incorporated. Mr. Blodgett was president of both these corporations from their organization until his death April 5, 1894. He was a fine type of the conscientious business man, honest, fair, careful and candid. In social life he was genial and courteous, popular with his associates and beloved by his friends. In politics he was a Republican, but his business occupied so much of his time that he never was a candidate for any public office. He attended the Congregational church, of which his father was pastor so many years, and he was born in the old parsonage which stood on Walcott street. He was married in 1878 to Nora, daughter of Charles A. Leonard, who survives him. Three children were born to them, of whom two are living, a son and a daughter.
illustration on page 253: photo of Edward G. Blodgett, Founder of Blodgett & Orswell Co.
p. 253:BLODGETT, William Winthrop, the third child of Ely and Erne Blodgett, was born in Randolph, Vt., July 8, 1824. He attended the Orange county grammar school of his native town, and completed his education in Burlington at the University of Vermont, from which he was graduated in 1847. He read law with Judge Isaac H. Redfield, was admitted to the bar in 1850, and at once commenced the practice of law in Pawtucket, Mass. He represented Pawtucket in the lower house of the Massachusetts legislature in 1859-60, and was the first senator from Pawtucket in the Rhode Island legislature after the adjustment of the state boundary line in 1862. Since then at various times he has represented Pawtucket for twenty years in the lower house of the Rhode Island legislature. He has been judge of the Pawtucket Probate Court for the past 25 years, is commissioner of insolvency for Massachusetts, and is a Rhode Island bank commissioner. Judge Blodgett is an attendant of St. Paul's Episcopal church. Oct. 9, 1855, he was married to Salome W. Kinsley of Pawtucket, by which union there are seven children, Ellen Hobart, b. July 30, 1856; Edward Wilkinson, b. Sept. 27, 1857; William Constantine; Lloyd Morton, b. Feb. 23, 1863; John, b. April 15, 1867; Chauncey Hayden, b. March 23, 1870; and Kinsley, b. Feb. 3, 1874.
p. 253 - 254:BOARDMAN, William Howard, the son of James and Elizabeth (Howard) Boardman, was born in Lincoln, R. I., Aug. 9, 1862, and is of English descent, his parents having come to America in 1856. He obtained his education in the Lonsdale public schools. When 17 years old he went to work in the drug tore of A. L. Calder, 163 Westminster street, Providence, where he remained for nine years, and by study and experience became a first-class pharmacist. May 13, 1889, he purchased from H. W. Porter & Co., the drug store at 1661 Lonsdale avenue, which he has since successfully conducted. By attending to all the details of his business, and catering to local wants, he has developed the business much beyond its original proportions. Mr. Boardman is an enthusiastic sportsman, is a good shot and knows how to handle a rod. He is a Republican in politics. He is genial and companionable and belongs to many societies, among which are: Union Lodge, No. 10, A. F. and A. M.; Pawtucket Royal Arch Chapter, No. 4; Pawtucket Council, No. 2, R. and S. Masters; Holy Sepulchre Commandery, No. 8; Palestine Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S., Providence, R. I. Sept. 30, 1885, he was married to Maud Rouse Eastwood, daughter of Eastwood Eastwood (sic) of Central Falls, and they have two children: Ethel E., b. June 26, 1887, d. Aug. 26, 1889; and Eastwood Howard, b. Oct. 5, 1889.
illustration on page 253: photo, William H. Boardman, druggist, Lonsdale.
p. 254:BORDEN, Frank H., the second child of Alpheus and Hannah W. (Colwell) Borden, was born in Pawtucket, April 18, 1863. He went to school until he was fifteen years old, when he went to work in the dry goods house of Small & Harley as a clerk. He continued in that capacity through the various changes of the firm, but upon the incorporation of the David Harley Co. in 1893, he was elected secretary and still holds that position. Mr. Borden is a scion of the well-known Fall River family of manufacturers, and his father was born in that city. In politics he is a Republican. He is a member of the Park Place Congregational church, belongs to the Good Fellows, and is a Knight of Pythias. June 6, 1888, he was married to Mary E. Bacon of Pawtucket.
p. 254:BOURNE, Arthur Orville, the fourth child of Henry Orville and Jane Mason (Case) Bourne, was born in Pawtucket, March 20, 1871. He attended the grammar and high schools until he was 17 years old, when he became a clerk in the store of George C. Peck. His close application to business and his intelligent comprehension of the matters intrusted to his care soon attracted the attention of his employer and on May 1, 1894, he was admitted as a partner, under the firm name of George C. Peck & Co. Mr. Bourne's ancestors lived for many generations in Rehoboth and Seekonk. His grandfather, Almond Orville Bourne, was born May 4, 1809, in Rehoboth; his grandmother, Charlotte Delia Fitts, was born Jan. 9, 1811 in Seekonk; his father was born in Seekonk, April 3, 1833, and his mother born in the same place March 13, 1841. In politics Mr. Bourne is a Republican. He attends the Park Place Congregational church.
illustration on page 254: photo, Arthur O. Bourne, of Geo. C. Peck & Co.
p. 254:BOWEN, Charles Artemus, fifth child of Reuben and Sarah Ann (George) Bowen, was born in Rehoboth, Mass., April 10, 1848. He went to school until he was eighteen years old and then followed the occupation of a farmer until he attained his 29th year. In 1886 he joined his brothers-in-law, Leroy E. and Nathan Bowen, as a partner in the firm of Bowen Bros., wholesale and commission merchants in hay, grain and produce, at Nos. 35 to 39 Broadway, Pawtucket, and has since continued in that firm and business. Mr. Bowen's father was born in Rehoboth, Oct. 15, 1812; and his mother was born in Wrentham, Mass. In politics he is a Republican. He is a member of the First Baptist church. March, 1870, he was married to Nancy P. Bowen of Rehoboth, by which union there are four children: Grace Amelia, b. Dec. 26, 1872, d. Dec. 2, 1885; Jessie May, b. Sept. 9, 1874; Ethel Louise, b. Dec. 1, 1877; Louis Mason, b. July 25, 1880, d. Feb. 10, 1895. His wife was born March 3, 1852.
p. 254 - 255:BOWEN, Edward S., son of Clovis H. and Nancy W. (Steere) Bowen, was born May 9, 1850, in the village of Chepachet, town of Glocester, R.I. He attended the public schools until he was fifteen years old and then took a year's course in the Suffield Literary Institution, Suffield, Conn. His first occupation was as bookkeeper at the Glen River woolen mills, Pascoag, R.I., where he continued two years. He then came to Pawtucket, went to work for Smith Grant & Co., and has continued with that firm and its successor the Newell Coal & Lumber Co., ever since. He is now treasurer of the corporation, and is also a director of the Slater Cotton Co. In politics Mr. Bowen is a Democrat. He is an attendant of the Congregational church, and belongs to the Franklin Society of Providence. Sept. 1887 he was married to Elma S. Brown of Providence, and they have three children: Edith, Joseph B., and Faith. Mr. Bowen's grandfather, Dr. Joseph Bowen, was born in Providence, R.I., in 1756, and was surgeon on the privateer 'Chance' during the war of the revolution. His father, Clovis H. Bowen, who was born May 9, 1801, on the corner of Bowen and North Main street, Providence, was for thirty-two successive years town clerk of Glocester, R.I.
p. 255:BOWEN, Clovis H., was born in Glocester, R.I., April 23, 1853, and is the son of Clovis H. and Nancy W. (Steere) Bowen. He attended the public schools of Franklin, Mass., until he was seventeen years old, then entered West Point Military Academy, and was graduated in the class of '76. His first occupation was that of a clerk for Smith Grant & Co., Pawtucket, with which concern he remained about a year. He then worked a number of years for C. H. George & Co. of Providence. Afterwards he was bookkeeper with the Barstow Stove Co., and resigned that position to take charge of the affairs of N. S. Collyer & Co., which firm was later reorganized as the Collyer Machine Co., and Mr. Bowen became treasurer and general manager, which positions he now holds. In politics Mr. Bowen in a Democrat. He is an attendant of the Pawtucket Congregational church, is a member of the Pawtucket Business Men's Association and is a thirty-second degree Mason. Sept. 6, 1877, he was married to Mary E., daughter of Samuel S. Collyer, who was for so many years the chief of Pawtucket's fire department. By this union there is one child: Edward, born Dec. 5, 1884.
illustration on page 255: photo, Clovis H. Bowen, Treasurer of the Collyer Machine Co.
p. 255 - 256:BOWEN, Leroy Everett, the second child of Otis P. and Ruth A. (Pearce) Bowen, was born in Warren, R. I., March 1, 1854. His paternal grandfather, Darius Bowen, was born in Rehoboth, Mass., March 1, 1790, and died there Oct. 7, 1862; he married Nancy Peck of the same place, who was born Jan. 19, 1787, and died March, 1831. His maternal grandfather, Gamaliel Pearce, was born in Dighton, Mass., Aug. 15, 1799, and died Aug. 13, 1878; he married Persis Baker, who was born in Rehoboth, July 4, 1804, and died March 25, 1886. Leroy's father was born in Rehoboth, Mass., March 3, 1827 and was a ship builder and farmer; and he married Ruth A. Pearce of Dighton, Mass., April 13, 1832 [sic - probably 1852]. Leroy attended the public schools of Rehoboth until he was nineteen years old. For several years he worked on a farm; but finding this employment uncongenial to his tastes, he became a clerk in a grocery store at Somerset, Mass., where he remained a few years. Coming to Pawtucket in 1879 he worked in a market and produce store for Ruel S. Darling, and then in the wholesale commission house of N. W. Whipple. April, 1884, he established his present business in partnership with his brother Nathan and his brother-in-law Charles A. Bowen, under the firm name of Bowen Bros., and that firm now conducts an extensive business as wholesale and commission dealers in grain, straw and produce at Nos. 25 to 39 Broadway. The business has been successful from its beginning and is constantly increasing. In politics Mr. Bowen is a Republican. He attends the Broadway Baptist church. October 19, 1887, he was married to Carrie I. Luther of Rehoboth, Mass., by which union there have been five children, Eunice L., b. Jan. 6, 1889; Howard P., b. Dec. 29, 1889, d. Oct. 15, 1890; Ralph F., b. April 28, 1893, d. Jan. 1, 1895; and Marjorie L., b. Oct. 29, 1894.
p. 256:BOWEN, Nathan, the fourth child of Otis P. and Ruth A. (Pearce) Bowen, was born in Rehoboth, Mass., Nov. 26, 1859. He attended the public schools of his native town until he was seventeen years old, when he left home in the fall of 1877, and learned the wood-turning trade. He followed this occupation until Sept. 1, 1882, when he entered Bryant & Stratton's Business College, Providence, R. I., but left in June, 1883, before his graduation to take a position as bookkeeper with Ira Winsor & Co., steam and gas pipe fitters, Providence. He remained with that concern until May, 1884. he became bookkeeper in September, 1884, for N. W. Whipple, dealer in hay, straw, grain and produce in Pawtucket. Feb. 1, 1887, in company with his brother, Leroy E. Bowen and his brother-in-law Charles A. Bowen, he started the firm of Bowen Bros., wholesale and commission dealers in hay, straw, grain and produce, at 35 to 39 Broadway, Pawtucket. Mr. Bowen is a Republican, and is an active member of the Garfield Club. He attends the First Baptist church. June 8, 1887, he was married to Clara E. Pierce of Taunton, Mass., by which union there is one child, Ruth A., b. Sept. 29, 1891.
Continued
These documents are made available free to the public for non-commercial purposes by the Rhode Island USGenWeb Project. Transcribed 2001 by Beth Hurd
Back
to the Providence, R. I. Home Page