Franklin County MA

Asa Todd of West Chesterfield MA

Asa Todd5, (Gershom4, Gershom3, Michael2, Christopher1) born June 28, 1756, died July 16, 1847, in West Chesterfield Mass., and was buried there. He married May 24, 1778, Abigail, daughter of Amos and Phebe Bishop, of New Haven, Conn. He was a Baptist minister and held pastorates in Whately and West Chesterfield, Mass., for more than thirty years, having been ordained the first pastor of the Baptist Society of Whately, Mass., Sept. 9, 1789. In 1803 he removed to West Chesterfield, Mass., where he was ordained the second pastor of the Baptist Society of that place, and was dismissed Nov. 2, … Read more

Biography of Allen, Nathaniel Topliff

Allen, Nathaniel Topliff, son of Ellis and Lucy (Lane) Allen, was born in Medfield, Norfolk County, Sept. 29, 1823. His native homestead farm has been owned and tilled by seven generations of Allens, noted for longevity, sterling common-sense, and rugged worth; and there, during his boyhood, the subject of this sketch followed the pursuits of his ancestors, and laid the foundation of a vigorous constitution. Three years of his minority were spent in a Waltham cotton mill, where he acquired a knowledge of textile manufacture; he also received a good common-school education in the public schools, a family school kept … Read more

Biography of J. Herbert L. Smead

J. HERBERT L. SMEAD – A well known figure in business circles in Erving, and in social and civic interests in Orange, is J. Herbert L. Smead, whose lifelong activities have been of a practical nature and whose present success as the manager of the Heywood-Wakefield Company in Erving, places him among the thoroughly outstanding men of the day. Mr. Smead is a son of J. Henry Smead, who died, March 17, 1924, at the age of eighty-five years and who throughout the greater part of his lifetime was an employee of the New Bedford Post Office. The mother, Sarah … Read more

Biography of Myron James Farr

MYRON JAMES FARR – The surname of Farr is believed by many to be identical with Farrar, and there is considerable reason for the supposition as persons of both names appear simultaneously in the different localities of New England. It is derived from a Latin word meaning iron and was probably used as a place name before it came into use as a family name. It was first known in England from Gualkeline (or Walkeline) de Ferraris, a Norman of distinction attached to William, Duke of Normandy, before the conquest of England in 1066. From him all of the name … Read more

Biography of John Wesley Riddell

JOHN WESLEY RIDDELL, whose death occurred on April 27, 1910, took from the community of Greenfield a worthy citizen and one who had contributed much towards its development and upbuilding. He was born in Charlemont, Massachusetts, a nineteenth century representative of a family of prominence. The Riddell family is of Scotch origin, the name having been variously spelled as Ridel, Riddle, Riddel, Riddell, Ridley, and Ridlum, but all of the names were derived from the same source, the dale or valley of the River Rye, or Ryedale, whence the family first took their name, that being the place of residence … Read more

Biography of William Edward Benson

WILLIAM EDWARD BENSON, who is at the head of a flourishing real estate and insurance business in Greenfield, is the descendant of a family originally settled in Vermont. His grandfather, John Ellis Benson, was born in 1809, in Brookline, Vermont, and died in 1892 in Brattleboro, Vermont. He lived in different places in Vermont and for a time lived in Quebec. He was engaged in the milling trade and before his death had settled in Brattleboro, Vermont, where he lived with his son George. William A. Benson, son of John E. Benson, was born May 14, 1842, in Windham, Vermont, … Read more

Biography of Harry Lee Williams

HARRY LEE WILLIAMS – The family name of Williams is of great antiquity in England and Wales and is derived from the ancient personal name William. Like many other possessive names, it arose from the Welsh custom of adding to a man’s name the name of his father in the possessive form as William John’s, from which quickly came Jones, David Diehard’s, Thomas David’s (Davie’s, Davis) and kindred forms. Sir Robert Williams, ninth baronet of the house of Williams of Penrhyn, was a lineal descendant of Marchudd ap Cynan, Lord of Aberqeleu in Denbighshire, of one of the fifteen tribes … Read more

Biographical Sketch of Oliver Childs

(VI) Oliver, youngest son of Libbeus and Sarah (Walker) Childs, was born in Conway, July 27, 1783. He settled in Seneca, New York, where he married for his first wife, Electa, daughter of Oliver Whitmore, of that town; she died without issue, August 2, 1816. He married (second) Nancy, daughter of Selah and Huldah Hart, of Seneca; she died April 30, 1831. He married (third) Betsey, daughter of John Gilbert, of Seneca. Children by second marriage: Benjamin, mentioned elsewhere; Electa Emeline; Theron Hart; Augustus Walstein; Edmund; Emeline; Joseph, and Gilbert. Children by his third marriage: Bradley Alonzo; Nancy Augusta, and … Read more

Biography of Orland Jonas Brown, M.D.

ORLAND JONAS BROWN, M. D. – Since 1870, Dr. Orland Jonas Brown has been steadily practicing his profession in North Adams, and his activities in the service of community, commonwealth and nation have created a debt of gratitude that they have been repaying in the honored esteem in which he is held. He has served his community as a health officer, his State in its Legislature, and as a surgeon in its militia, from which, after twenty years service he was retired with the rank of lieutenant-colonel, and his long record is one of honor and brilliance in service. Dr. … Read more

Biography of Emory William Brown

EMORY WILLIAM BROWN – On his paternal side descended from one of the first settlers of the town of Rowe, Massachusetts, and son of an honored citizen of Greenfield, who served through two enlistments in the Civil War, and with his wife was killed in a railroad accident, Emory William Brown has for the past forty-three years been connected with the Millers Falls Company, Millers Falls, Massachusetts. He acquired a complete knowledge of the milling department and now (1924) is the head of that department with a force of thirty-eight men at work under his supervision. He is a member … Read more