Mrs. Mary Slayton Luce, wife of Chester Luce, was born in Woodstock, Vt., April 18, 1787. Her father, Samuel Slayton, was a farmer in good circumstances, though possessing but a limited education, an honest, frugal, and kindly man. Her mother, Hannah, whose maiden name was Stowe, was in every respect a superior woman. Mrs. Luce, in her youth improved every educational advantage the rural district in which she resided could afford. As she grew older she acquired a passionate fondness for reading, especially of poetry and romance. At a more mature age she engaged in school teaching, which vocation she followed until her marriage with Chester Luce, March 17, 1818, when they removed to this town, where Mrs. Luce breathed her last, April 20, 1861.
