Plainfield New Hampshire

Biography of William Hall

William Hall, a retired merchant of Plainfield, was born in Cornish, N.H., February 28, 1846, son of Israel and Elizabeth D. (Demming) Hall. He is a descendant of Willis Hall. His grandfather, Jonathan Hall, who was a native of Connecticut, was the first of the family to ascend the river for the purpose of settling. Jonathan, who was an extensive farmer, married Mercy Cady; and his children were: Israel, Sophia, Alfred, and Susan, all of whom were born in Windsor, Vt. Sophia married Sullivan Blood, of Windsor, and with her husband made the journey from Vermont to Missouri by horse … Read more

Biography of John B. Moore

John B. Moore, a prosperous dairy farmer of Plainfield, Sullivan County, N.H., son of Hiram and Ruby (Silloway) Moore, was born in this town, April 9, 1849. His great – grandfather, William Moore, who was a native of County Tyrone, Ireland, emigrated to America early in the eighteenth century, and became one of the first settlers in Pembroke, N.H. He was a Deacon of the Congregational church. James Moore, son of William, was a native of New Hampshire, but passed the greater part of his life in Vermont as a hard-working farmer. He was a noted tenor singer in his … Read more

Biography of Edward Dimick Baker

Edward Dimick Baker was an able advocate and lawyer of Claremont. He was born April 21, 1827, at Meriden, N.H., son of Dimick and Hannah (Colby) Baker. He was a descendant in a direct line from Joseph Baker, who was born April 13, 1678. Joseph’s son, Hernon, by his wife, Abigail Bissel Baker, married Lois Gilbert, who had a son Oliver, a physician, who married Dorcus Dimick, and became the father of Dimick Baker. Dimick Baker was born March 18, 1793, in Plainfield, N.H., where he resided throughout his life. He was a prosperous merchant and farmer, and one of … Read more

Biographical Sketch of Thomas Cheney

Thomas Cheney, born in Plainfield, N. H., in 1795, came here in 1827, and located upon the farm he still occupies. He married Sally Stevens, who died November 5, 1881, after rearing a family of eight children. William S. Cheney, son ;of Thomas, resides in Morrisville , Mary S., a daughter, is the wife of N. A. Terrill, Adelia is the wife of Henry Bryant, and Sarah, wife of Loyal Hoyt, resides in St. Lawrance county, N. Y.

Biography of William Cutler True

William Cutler True, for many years one of the most successful farmers of Plainfield, was born May 9, 1834, son of Major Reuben and Hannah (Duncan) True. The first representatives of the True family in America came from England, settling in Salisbury, Mass., going thence to Salisbury, N.H., and from there coming to Plainfield. They were robust and self-reliant, and bore unflinchingly the sacrifices and hardships of the early days. Benjamin True, the grandfather of William C., was a prosperous farmer of Salisbury. His first marriage was contracted with a Sanborn, whose children were: Reuben, Osgood, Hannah, Sarah, Judith, Abigail, … Read more

Biography of Edgar A. Churchill

Edgar A. Churchill, a prominent resident of Cornish, was born in this town, August 29, 1847. His parents were Barker B. Churchill, son of Lewis Churchill and Mary (Angier) Churchill, of Cornish. The latter, who was Barker’s first wife, had eight children, of whom Edgar A., Mary E., and Jennie reached maturity. Mary is now Mrs. Lovell B. George, of Newport, and has two children-Jennie and Albert. Jennie Churchill, who married William F. Waite, a pattern maker of Hubbardston, Mass., is now deceased. The father, a carpenter by trade, was in the late war, having enlisted at West Lebanon in … Read more

Biography of Benjamin F. Porter

Benjamin F. Porter, a member of the Board of Selectmen of Plainfield, was born in this town, August 28, 1852, son of Jabez and Eliza F. (Green) Porter. The Rev. Micah Porter, the father of Jabez, was a Congregational minister, who, after preaching in Connecticut, his native State, for some years, was called to Plainfield, where he passed the rest of his life. He was also a cancer doctor. The maiden name of his wife was Elizabeth Gallup, and his children were: Isaac, Benjamin, William, John, Jabez, Martha, and Phœbe. The five sons studied medicine, and four of them became … Read more

Biography of Charles Gilkey

Charles Gilkey, a prominent resident of Cornish, who was formerly engaged in the gunsmith business, is a native of Plainfield, N.H., born September 29, 1826. Charles Gilkey, his grandfather, born in Connecticut, was the first of the family to come to Plainfield. He came originally as agent of a wealthy Connecticut family, and remained in their employ for some time. After failing in an attempt to buy a farm with the Continental money in which his salary was paid, owing to the depreciated value of that currency then, he succeeded in leasing one from the State for nine hundred and … Read more

Biographical Sketch of Solomon Stone

Solomon Stone was born in Plainfield, November 6, 1811, and died January 12, 1892. His wife, born in Cornish, June 11, 1813, still lives in Plainfield, enjoying good health and able to do nearly all her own work without assistance. Mr. Chadbourne’s mother, Sally Cady, was born in Cornish, August 29, 1790, and died December 16, 1864. Grandfather Cady was the first of the name to come to Cornish. He was born in 1743; and his wife was Hannah Hutchins, born in 1746. Grandfather Cady rode from Connecticut by marked trails. For a riding whip he had a willow stick; … Read more

Biography of William P. Wood

William P. Wood, a farmer of Plainfield, was born here, December 29, 1859, son of Alban Palmer and Rhoda (Eaton) Wood, of this town. His grandfather, John Wood was the first male child born in Lebanon, N.H. John was one of the foremost and wealthiest farmers in the district and a very religious man. He married Persis Hyde, of Lebanon, who bore him eleven children; namely, Persis, John, Jr., Lucinda, Jemima, Sally, Thomas, Annie, Harriet, Martha, Palmer, and one child who died in infancy. Persis, who was born in 1797, and did not marry, died at the age of fifty. … Read more

Blaisdell Family of Norwich Vermont

Michael Blaisdell, the progenitor of the family in Norwich, came from Plainfield, N. H., in the year 1813, and settled on the farm where Henry S. Goddard now lives. His sons were Jonathan, Levi, Stephen, and Thomas. Of these Levi and Stephen spent their lives in town and reared large families.

Biography of John S. Andrews

John S. Andrews, a thrifty farmer and stock-raiser of Plainfield, Sullivan County, N.H., was born in this town, February 27, 1853, son of Nathan and Abigail E. (Ellis) Andrews. His great-grandfather, Nathan Andrews, was the first of the family to settle in Plainfield; and Wilbur Andrews, his grandfather, was a native of this town. He followed agricultural pursuits through the active period of his life, and was one of the prosperous farmers of his day. He left a good estate. He married Orinda Ross, a native of Canada; and his children were: Nathan, Abigail, and Wealthy. Abigail became the wife … Read more

Biography of Almon W. French

Almon W. French, of Plainfield, Sullivan County, represents the third generation of the Frenches in this town. The family is of English origin, and members of it were pioneers of New England. Its founder in Plainfield, Nathaniel French, the grandfather of Almon W., came here when about twenty-two years of age, at the time when much of the district was an unbroken wild. Having done his part in rendering the place habitable, he died at the age of eighty-nine. His wife, Alice Back French, had eight children, of whom one died in infancy. The others were: Liman, George, Hezekiah, John, … Read more

Biography of Cyrus E. Baker, M.D.

Cyrus E. Baker, M.D., of Claremont, Sullivan County, N.H., the well-known physician and oculist, was born in Plainfield, this State, April 9, 1835, son of Dimic and Hannah (Colby) Baker. He is of the eighth generation in descent from Jeffrey Baker, who came from England, and was one of the original settlers of Windsor, Conn. Jeffrey Baker married November 25, 1642, Joan Rockwell. They had five children, one of them being a son, Joseph, born June 18, 1655, who married Hannah Cook Buckland, January 30, 1677. Five children were the fruit of this union. Joseph Baker’s son, Joseph, Jr., born … Read more

Biography of Fred Moulton

Fred Moulton, a leading resident of Plainfield and the proprietor of a large grocery store at Lebanon, was born July 11, 1836, in Plainfield, son of Stephen R. and Sally (Noyes) Moulton. The Moultons have had representatives in Plainfield for four generations, men who have been prominent in the development of the town and closely identified with all the important events in its history. The first of the name to settle here was William, grandfather of Mr. Fred Moulton, who took up land, and cleared a farm, which is still in the possession of his descendants. Known from the first … Read more

Biography of Ralston H. Penniman

Ralston H. Penniman, one of Plainfield’s most able farmers and prominent residents, was born in this town, which is in the north-western part of Sullivan County, January 9, 1819, son of Thomas and Dorinda W. (Wood) Penniman. He comes of substantial Colonial stock of English extraction, being a lineal descendant of one of the very early settlers on the shores of Massachusetts Bay; namely, James Penniman, who, with his wife, Lydia Eliot, and her brother, John Eliot, of honored memory as the apostle to the Indians, arrived on the ship “Lion” in 1631. The family name, it is said, was … Read more

Biography of Frank A. Jordan

Frank A. Jordan, a veteran of the Civil War, who is carrying on a thriving business as a stone cutter in Plainfield, N.H., was born in this town, April 19, 1840, son of Anthony W. and Mercy (Root) Jordan. It is known that some of his ancestors served in the Revolutionary War. His grandfather was James Jordan, who died May 10, 1860, aged eighty-two years. He was a native of Plainfield and a son of the first member of the family to settle here. James Jordan was a contractor for the construction of roads and bridges, and also carried on … Read more

Biography of Ora C. Davis

Ora C. Davis, an esteemed resident of Plainfield, was born in the town of Hartford, Vt., March 8, 1847. His great-grandfather, Jeremiah, was a native of Sutton, N.H. Jeremiah and his father were the first of the name to settle in the part of Grantham, N.H., now called Plainfield. He was a farmer by occupation, and had a family of nine children. The grandfather, Samuel Davis, also a native of Sutton, born in 1776, married Maria Hadley, daughter of Simeon Hadley, and had a family of nine children. These were: Lucy, Isaac, Samuel, Charles, Martin, Alfred, Louisa, George W., and … Read more

Biography of Alvah B. Chellis

Alvah B. Chellis, a leading farmer of Plainfield and the senior partner in the well-known firm, Chellis & Stickney, was born here, January 27, 1841, son, of John Pettengill and Lucinda (Bean) Chellis. The first representative of the family in this country came from Wales in 1636. His son John, born in Kingston, N.H., was the great-great-grandfather of Alvah B. Chellis. John’s son Thomas, born in Kingston about the year 1750, was in the Revolution together with all his brothers, and fought at Bunker Hill. The grandfather, Thomas Chellis, Jr., who was born at Salisbury, this State, March 24, 1785, … Read more

Biography of Alfred Woodman

Alfred Woodman, a successful farmer of Plainfield, Sullivan County, N.H., and a veteran of the Civil War, was born in Newburyport, Mass., March 9, 1834, son of Daniel and Sarah (Hall) Woodman. His grandfather, Joseph Woodman, was a native of Newbury, Mass., and a cabinet-maker by trade. He was twice married; and his second wife was Abigail Atkinson, of Newbury, who reared the following children: William, Edna, Abbie, Jane, Hannah, Betsey, Phoebe, David, John, James, Joseph, and Daniel. William Woodman became a prominent business man of Dover, N.H., was a man of strict integrity, and for a period of fifty … Read more