James Kidder settled in Alstead at an early day. His son Ezra carried on a cloth manufactory for a time, and was also engaged in the manufacture of starch. James, Jr., reared a family of seven children, three of whom are now living. One of them, James A., resides on road 47.
Dr. Henry Carpenter was born in Alstead, N. H., December 24, 1803. His father, Eber Carpenter, was a practicing physician in Alstead from 1802 until his death, May 23, 1841. Henry, the eldest of his eight sons, distinguished himself in the profession of medicine and surgery. He graduated medicine at Castleton, Vt., in 1825, and soon after settled in Chesterfield where he soon gave evidence of superior skill, and with a growing reputation as such, continued the practice of his profession until his death, August 1852. Decisive in all things, ignoring creeds, he spent his life in ministering to the … Read more
Eleazer W. Heath, son of David, and a native of Corinth, Vt., married Rhoda Merril, of Bradford, Vt., and for his second wife, Mary N. (Gibbs) Gilmore, of Jaffrey. Mr. Heath was a soldier in the war of 1812, and was at the battle of Plattsburg. He is now living, at the great age of ninety years, and occupies a farm on road 29, known as the Emory place. He has seven children.
Keene Congregational ( Unitarian) Society. – The Unitarian Society was organized March 18, 1824. They had occasional preaching during the year. On the thirtieth of August, of the same year, a call was extended to the Rev. Samuel Barrett, to become the pastor, but he declined the invitation. Mr. Barrett was a graduate of Harvard, in the class of 1818, of the Harvard Divinity school, in 1822, and received the degree of 1)- D., from Harvard in 1847. He was a scholarly and cultivated gentleman. In 1825 he became the first pastor of the Twelfth Congregational (Unitarian) Society of Boston, … Read more
I. The ancestor of the Daniel2 Wilson family came from Tyrone, Ireland, in 1737, with the famous Scotch Irish emigrants. These emigrants were a hardy, industrious, long-lived, honest and sturdy race of people. A great proportion of New Hampshire’s most distinguished sons are found among their descendants. One of these emigrants was James1 Wilson. The history of Peterborough gives his name as WILLIAM. Later researches favor JAMES, but we are not positively sure of the name. Nor do we know who was his wife. They brought with them from Ireland a son, Robert2, and a daughter, Lettuce2. In this country … Read more
Samuel Hamilton, born in Ireland, in 1752, was the son of a linen merchant, or weaver, came to Boston about 1772, and settled in Chesterfield sometime between 1780 and 1785. He married Mary, sister of Dr. Joshua Tyler, May 9, 1775. He was engaged after coming to Chesterfield in the weaving of linen cloth. He died February 12, 1810. His children were John, Hannah, Hance, Loammi, James, Samuel, Ara, Fanny, Uri, and Amadella. Ara, born May 22, 1789, married twice, first, Sally, daughter of James Roberston, in 1815, who died December 11, 1823; and second.Almira, daughter of Phineas Fullam, in … Read more
Asa Powers, whose father, Elliot, was a soldier in the Revolution, was a native of Temple, N. H., and married Rachel Cutler of the same place. He had but one child, Elliot, who married Mary, daughter of Joseph and Abigail Robins. Joseph W. is their only living son.
Elijah Boyden, a native of Massachusetts, came to this town in 1806, and died here July 22, 1814, aged fifty-one years. His son Elijah, born here August 15, 1814, began life as a clerk for his brother, with whom he remained seven years. He then went to Boston, and remained about three years, when he returned to Marlboro, and was a merchant here for fifteen years.
The First Congregational church of Keene was organized October 18, 1738, with a membership of nineteen males. Rev. John Bacon, the proprietors clerk, was ordained October 18th, and settled over the church. Mr. Bacon graduated at Harvard in 1731. The church, originally built near the south end of Main street, was moved, in 1741, to a site near the present General Wilsons house, and was destroyed with the other buildings in 1747. Mr. Bacon was dismissed upon the evacuation of the town. In 1753, on the return of the settlers, the church was built on the common, and was occupied … Read more
Daniel, Amos, Israel, and Nathan Thomas, sons of one of the early pioneers, all settled here themselves as pioneers. Nathan married Marion Coats, and settled as a farmer in the northern part of the town. His children were Nathan, Charles, Frederick, Gideon, Thankful, Eunice, Electa and Marion. Nathan Thomas, Jr., was born in Fort Hinsdale, and settled on the place where his son Franklin and Waldo Rouillard now reside. He married Abigail Butler, and had born to him ten children, only two of whom now reside in the town-Mrs. Ellen Tyler and Franklin. The latter, at the age of seventy-three … Read more
Leonard F. Sawyer, son of Josiah, married Mary B., daughter of Albert and Mary P. (Pollard) Adams, of Rindge, and has two children-Etta ML and Ella M., twins. He is a prosperous farmer and has three Summer cottages on Contoocook lake, which borders on his farm. He has a large collection of natural curiosities, antiquities and geological specimens.
The first baptism in town was administered in September, 1768, by Rev. Thomas Fessenden, of Walpole. In 1770 the town “chose nine men to conduct religious worship,” one of the number being appointed to procure a minister. Its 1773 a committee was chosen to select a site for building a house of worship, and the same year Rev. James Treadway was employed to supply the town with preaching, and was subsequently given a call to settle with them in the ministry, but declined because no church had been organized. In 1776 a vote was passed by the town to build … Read more
James Spencer was born at Springfield, Vt., in May, 1819. He learned the blacksmith trade there, married Susan M. McCrae. and reared two children, J. H. and Susan A. The former is a blacksmith in Keene, and the latter is the wife of H. P. Ware and resides in Alstead. James came to Alstead about 1846 and was engaged in the blacksmith business here. He was a celebrated clarionet player and died February 18, 1883. His widow resides in Keene, aged sixty-three years.
Col. Cyrus Kingsbury, from Worcester, Mass., came to Alstead in 1785. He married, first Annas S. Taynter, and second, Philete Partridge, rearing five sons and one daughter. He held a military commission for a considerable time, served as deacon of the Baptist church, and represented the town a number of years, and finally, in 1814, removed to Bloomfield, N. Y., where he soon after died. His family returned to Alstead. Cyrus, Jr., the only child of the Colonel’s first wife, though a cripple from his birth and ever afflicted with ill health, graduated at Brown University. R. a.. and subsequently … Read more
Timothy Brown and wife, Meredeth Ward, were the first settlers in the town, coming from Westmoreland, N. H., in the year 1797. He bought 450 acres of land on West hill, embracing the Stephen Leach farm and adjoining lands. Here he lived until 1829, when he removed to Ohio, where he passed the remainder of a long life. Four children survived him, Timothy, Bartlett, Rhoda, the wife of Thomas Potter, and Asenath, the wife of Stephen Leach, all of whom attained a ripe old age. The first two died in Ohio, the last two, in Waterville. The year before Mr. … Read more
The Congregational church of Chesterfield was organized in 1771, and the Rev. Abraham Wood, a graduate of Harvard, was ordained its first pastor for the following year. The ministry of Mr. Wood continued until his death in 1823. A few months previous to Mr. Wood’s death, Rev. John Walker, a graduate of Dartmouth, was installed as colleague pastor. Mr. Walker remained six years, and was succeeded by Rev. Elisha Smith, who was also a graduate of Dartmouth, and who remained here four years, when he was succeded by Rev. Josiah Ballard, a graduate of Harvard, and who remained for a … Read more
Hon. John Prentiss, the founder of the New Hampshire Sentinel, and for forty-eight years its editor, died at his residence in Court street, Friday noon, June 6, 1873, at the age of ninety-five years and three months. He came to Keene in March, 1799, at the age of twenty-one years, and established the Sentinel under many embarrassments, and with a list of subscribers numbering only seventy. His first printing office was in a low building standing where S. W. Hales house now stands, and for some time afterwards in the new building south of Dr. Edwardss tavern. Subsequently (in 182 … Read more
John Colony, son of a nobleman, was born in Kilkenny, Ireland, in 1730, and came to Boston when he was sixteen years of age. He had with him a bag of gold which was subsequently stolen from him, leaving him but four cents. After paying the toll to Charleston he had two cents left and had had no breakfast. He, however, obtained a half cord of wood to saw, thus enabling him to buy himself something to eat. He prospered, being willing to do any kind of work he could get to do. He came to Keene in 1761, and … Read more
John Butler, whose father, Josiah, was a nephew of Col. Josiah Willard, the principal grantee of Chesterfield, was born in Hinsdale, February 5.1786, and settled in Chesterfield in 1824. His widow, Lydia (Crowninshield) Butler, survives him, residing on road 27. Mr. Butler reared eight children: Marshall, Warren, Josiah, Ephraim, Erastus, Maria, Roswell, and Otis. Thomas F., son of Otis, resides or road 53. Mervin H., son of Otis, resides also on road 53. Warren H., son of Marshall, resides on road 50.
Amos Andrew Parker, son of Nahum, was born in Fitzwilliam, October 8. 1791. He was fitted for college at the New Ipswich academy, and graduated from the University of Vermont. He studied law with James Wilson, of Keene, and opened an office at Epping, N. H., where he remained two or three years. He then went to Concord, N. H., where he established the “New Hampshire Statesman.”