Biography of Charles A. Fisher

Charles A. Fisher, a prominent resident of Claremont, Sullivan County, and an ex-member of the New Hampshire legislature, was born in this town, November 10, 1837, son of Leonard P. and Nancy T. (Lincoln) Fisher. The original ancestor of the family in America was Anthony Fisher, who emigrated with his wife and five children from Syleham, Suffolk County, England, in 1637, and settled in Dedham, Mass. Jeremiah Fisher, a descendant of Anthony, resided for many years in Massachusetts, and enlisted four times to serve in the Revolutionary War. On the Lexington alarm roll, April 19, 1775, he appears as a private in Joseph Moses’s company, Colonel Samuel Bullard’s regiment. His last days were spent in Claremont, his death occurring at the age of eighty-nine years. His children were: Josiah, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (twins) Elizabeth, Hannah, Phoebe, and Prudence.

Abraham Fisher, son of Jeremiah and great-grandfather of the subject of this sketch, was born in Massachusetts in 1764. When his father joined the Continental army, he went to live with a Mr. Fasset, whom he accompanied Bunker Hill. In 1785 he and his wife came on horseback from Natick, Mass., to Claremont; and in 1796 he settled upon the farm which is now occupied by his great-grandson, Charles A. Abraham Fisher was a cabinet-maker; and he followed his trade in connection with farming, employing several apprentices. He possessed a great deal of mechanical ingenuity, being among the first inventors of a cooking-stove; and aside from his regular calling he operated a cider-mill, which was run by water-power. He was a Universalist in his religious views, and is said to have contributed one-sixth of the entire cost of the first church in Claremont of that denomination. He died on February 3, 1851, aged eighty-seven years; and he left a fair estate.

Josiah Fisher, only son of Abraham and grandfather of Charles A., was born in Natick, Mass., in 1784. He learned the cabinet-maker’s trade, and went to Rochester, N.Y., where he bought a piece of land, but later sold it, as he was forced to leave that locality on account of fever and ague. He settled permanently in York, N.Y., and engaged in the lumber business and farming. He died in September, 1856. He married Orena, daughter of Nathaniel and Rachel Goss, and had a family of ten children; namely, Leonard P., Clinton, Mary, Harriet, Caroline, Curtis, George, Fanny, Lucy, and Josiah.

Leonard P. Fisher, son of Josiah, was born in Claremont, October 6, 1807. When ten years old he accompanied his parents to New York State, where he assisted his father in business until he was twenty-two years old. He then returned to Claremont for the purpose of helping his grandfather, and eventually he inherited the homestead. He cultivated the farm successfully; and during the winter season he cut and hauled timber, which he manufactured at his own saw-mill into building material. He erected a number of houses, all of which are now standing. He was naturally cheerful, and was highly esteemed for his genial disposition and kind-heartedness. Leonard P. Fisher died December 6, 1893. He was an active member of the Universalist church and a liberal contributor toward its support. Nancy T. Lincoln, whom he married, was born in Pittsfield, Vt., May 17, 1815, daughter of Tisdale and Elizabeth Lincoln. Tisdale Lincoln passed his earlier years in Westmoreland, N.H., but later was a well-known citizen of Mendon and Pittsfield, Vt., and the father of nine children. To Leonard P. and Nancy T. (Lincoln) Fisher were born six children, as follows: Nancy Jane, Charles A., George L., Arba C., Albert F., and Edwin C. Nancy Jane is now the widow of Marvin Blood, and lives in Reading, Mass.; George L. was for several years a commission merchant in Boston and in New York City, where he died in June, 1890; Arba C. has been in a successful commission business in Boston for the past twenty-five years; Albert F. is a photographer in Hinsdale, N.H.; and Edwin C. is in the bicycle business in Everett, Mass. Mrs. Leonard P. Fisher is living at the age of eighty-two years, and occupies the old family residence in Claremont.

Charles A. Fisher attended the public schools in his boyhood, and when a young man he engaged in farming upon his own account in the eastern part of this town. He remained there until the death of his father, when he returned to the homestead in order to take charge of the property, and now resides in the house where his great-grandfather lived and died. As a practical farmer he ranks among the foremost in this section. In politics 1894, 1896, and 1897; and while representing this town in the legislature in 1889 and 1890 he served upon the Committee on Education.

Mr. Fisher married Elizabeth Dean, daughter of Horace Dean. They have one child, a daughter, Frances Emeline, who is a graduate of the Stevens High School of Claremont, was a teacher for several years, and is now the wife of Will J. Powers, of Brandon, Vt.