Rutland County Biographies

History of Rutland County Vermont
Written by H. P. Smith and W. S. Rann
Published by D. Mason & Co. in 1886

ADAMS, JOSEPH, the youngest of the seven children of John Adams, esq., was born in Londonderry, N. H., February 1, 1802. His mother was Mary Ann Morrison, a daughter of Joseph Morrison, esq., of Londonderry, and the second wife of John Adams.

The settlers of the old town of Londonderry were Scotch people, Protestant Presbyterians, who fled from Argyleshire, Scotland, early in the seventeenth century and made their abode in the north of Ireland, taking part there, not a few of them, in the memorable siege of Londonderry in 1688, which had a marked effect on the subsequent history of Protestantism. Thence they came to America early in the eighteenth century and were known in this country as the "Scotch-Irish." Dr. Belknap, in his history of New Hampshire, describes them as "a peculiarly industrious, frugal, hardy, intelligent and well-principled people, who constituted a valuable acquisition to the province." They brought with them from their ancestral home, and retained for many years, their peculiar Scotch customs, habits and speech. The strongly marked physical characteristics of the Adams's and Morrison's attested the purity of their national origin.

Mr. Adams removed with his parents, in the autumn of 1806, to Whitehall, N. Y., where he learned to work with his father on the farm and at the trade of boot and shoe-making, with such advantages for an education as he could command, until he was of age. On the 6th of November, 1823. he married Stella Miller, daughter of William Miller, esq., of Hampton, N.Y., and a sister of Rev. William Miller, widely known subsequently as "Prophet Miller."

In January, 1825, he took up his residence in Fairhaven, Vt., building a house on West street and carrying on his trade as shoemaker, but removed in a few years to a central part of the village, where he erected a house and shop and carried on an extensive wholesale and retail business, employing many journeymen and apprentices and supplying most of the merchants from Massachusetts to Canada with ladies' fine shoes. He sold out in Fairhaven in 1843 and removed with his family to Racine. Wisconsin, where he spent about a year. Returning to Fairhaven, he engaged in the spring of 1845, in company with Alonson Allen and William C. Kittredge, in building a mill and sawing Rutland marble, a business then in its infancy. There being no railroad, the marble had to be hauled from the quarries at West Rutland in blocks, and when sawed into slabs, as most of it was at first, hauled again to the canal at Whitehall, and thence shipped to various points for use. This was a large undertaking for those days, and required a relatively large amount of capital. Mr. Kittredge soon withdrew from the firm. Mr. Allen being extensively engaged in the production and manufacture of slate, then just begun, the laboring oar of the marble business fell to Mr. Adams. For two years the current set strongly against him. Much of the marble was unsound and worthless, and the immense outlay was unremunerative. To overcome this embarrassment required the closest application, untiring energy and perseverance, qualities inherent in the Scotch blood and physique of Mr. Adams. In 1851 the business had so far improved that they rebuilt and enlarged the mill, and, in company with William F. Barnes, of West Rutland, opened a new quarry, which proved in the end of great value. Mr. Ira C. Allen joined the company in 1852 ; Mr. Alonson Allen withdrew in 1854. and the firm then became Adams & Allen. which continued until 1869. when, having sold the quarry at West Rutland. Mr. Adams purchased Mr. Allen's interest in the mill and continued to run it in connection with his son, Andrew N., and his son-in-law. David B. Colton. until his death. February 26. 1878.

Mr. Adams was president of the Washingtonian Temperance Society, organized in Fairhaven in 1841 with over five hundred members. He was a leading member of the Odd Fellows in 1851-55 ; was chairman of the directors of the Park Association in 1855-56 and contributed largely to the erection of the park. He took an active part in building the school-house and town hall in 1860 and frequently proposed and advocated the introduction of public water works. He was the original mover in the establishment of the First National Bank of Fairhaven ; was one of the first and largest stockholders; was chosen a director in 1864 and became its president in 1873. holding the office until his death. He represented the town in the Legislatures of 1854 and 1855. being an active and prominent member.

While his opportunities for an education were only ordinary, yet he was not an uneducated man. but like many others of his time, was self-educated. He knew what was in many good books, being naturally of an active mind, with a genius for philosophy and mechanics, which led him always to inquire thoroughly for the causes and grounds of every opinion or statement. He was little inclined to accept anything upon authority, and from a somewhat extensive acquaintance with men, as well as from his own personal study, was well informed in history, in constitutional and international law, in trade, mechanics and science. He was an independent and fearless thinker in politics and religion. He early espoused the cause of the slave and was among the first subscribers and readers of the National Era, an anti-slavery journal edited by John G. Whittier at Washington in 1846-48, when slaves were bought and sold at public auction in the capital of the nation. He freely questioned and publicly combated current traditions, and alone, by his own study and reason, arrived at and defended rational opinions of the Bible, which were pronounced heretical by his friends, but which are now widely held and sustained by the critical scholarship of cyclopedias and reviews. He always had "the courage of his convictions." and so great was his confidence in what he deemed to be true and right that, while admitting the equal privilege and freedom of others, he yet made personal enemies by saying openly what he disdained to say covertly. But he possessed a most forgiving and tender heart, and would as soon do a kind service for an enemy as for a friend. Aiming always to be just, with pride in honor and honesty, he delighted in generosity. During the last two or three years of his life he endured much pain, but was composed and cheerful and met death without a fear, surrounded by all that devoted, loving children and grandchildren could bring to his comfort. Writing of his death at the time, a friend says: " For more than half a century he has been closely identified with the business interests of Fairhaven, and has been one of its most respected and public-spirited citizens.  In all the relations of life he was regarded as a strictly honest man. He was very frank, fearless, and outspoken, without a particle of hypocrisy or deceit. In business he was remarkable for his energy and tenacity of purpose, working out success where most men would have given up in despair, and never once, during his whole business career, failed to meet his obligations in full. In religion he was liberal; in politics a Republican, and he was always a warm friend of temperance in all things. His social qualities were much above the average. He was extremely fond of music and no mean performer on the violin. Although economical in his style of living, he was ever a friend of the poor, generous and kind-hearted. The people of Fairhaven will long have occasion to cherish the memory of Mr. Adams, as a citizen thoroughly identified with the interests of the town and village, warmly favoring all practical public improvements, an advocate of good schools and all moral reforms."

ALLEN, COLONEL ALONSON. Few men, if any, have so indelibly left their impress  upon the history of any town in the county as did Colonel Allen upon the town of Fairhaven and indeed the western portion of Rutland county. His more than forty-two years of residence were years of incessant and Herculean labor.

Young men of today, looking abroad upon the two great mining industries of this county, only dimly discern the rugged way over which the pioneers struggled and toiled. Men scarcely beyond middle life call to mind the hills of Rutland, Fairhaven, Poultney, before the blows of quarrymen or the crash of explosion awakened the echoes. Resources upon all sides, now apparently inexhaustible, were slumbering possibilities awaiting the summon of human wills.

To write the story of one who was a pioneer in developing either of these great industries, marble or slate, would be to tell of years of labor unremitting, beset by discouragements, embarrassment and misfortunes, sometimes disaster, with little money, without knowledge or experience, with no central market but with a scattered and precarious trade, compelled to give long and doubtful credits-his was no bed of roses. There is a peculiar and added emphasis if, after having withstood the strain incident to the attainment of fortune from one untried industry, with courage he boldly sets himself at work to unearth still other possible sources of wealth, becoming the pioneer and only early promoter of a kindred, the slate industry. To command from the worthless rocks two industries which should be the means of making possible thousands of happy homes in this valley of the Champlain, was at once the ambition as it was the mission of Colonel Allen.

His grandfather. Deacon Timothy Allen, removed from Woodbury, Conn., to Pawlet in this county, in 1768. He was first cousin of General Ethan Allen. His father, also Deacon Timothy Allen, passed his early years in the latter town, and as a member of Colonel Herrick's regiment, participated in the battle of Bennington. The subject of this sketch was born in Bristol, Vt., where his father had settled some years previous, on August 22, 1800. He was the youngest but one of nine children, all of whom he survived.

In 1814 his father removed to Hartford, Washington county, N. Y., to which place Alonson soon followed. The twenty succeeding years were passed there. Wanting the physical strength to pursue the carpenter's trade, to which he was early apprenticed, he turned to mercantile pursuits, and was soon offered a clerkship in the store of Joseph Harris, then the leading merchant in town and perhaps in the county. His rare business qualifications soon became apparent to his employer, and after two years' service he offered to start him in business in a neighboring village. The new firm was A. Allen & Co., Mr. Harris being the Co. After about two years together, Mr. Allen purchased his partner's interest, and with the exception of about two years conducted the business alone, until the spring of 1S35, when, disposing of his store, he went for a short time to Conesus, Livingston county, N. Y., where he also engaged in trade; returning in March, 1836. he removed to Fairhaven, where he remained to the close of his life, and where he died September 5, 1878. Here he found that broader field for the exercise of his restless activity, which his inclination and capacity sought. Purchasing a bankrupt stock of goods, he at once entered ardently into the mercantile business, determined to compel success in a town where nearly all enterprises had failed.

Finding himself well established in town, in 1838, two years after his arrival, he leased from Jacob Davey the iron works then lying idle. These works had been operated since 1795, and consisted of forge, rolling and slitting-mill and nail-mill, the rolling-mill having been the first one erected between New York city and Canada. In this enterprise there were associated with him Israel McConnell, of Hebron, and Harvey Brown, of Hartford, N. Y., though they gave no time to the business. During the four following years we find the products of these mills-nails and iron-scattered from New Hampshire to Wisconsin, the latter State being reached by the then new Erie Canal and the lakes, and the New Hampshire. Massachusetts, Vermont and New York trade being supplied by teams which were sent out with the goods, returning with old scrap iron from which the new was largely though not altogether produced. Iron ore was brought from Peru and Moriah, N. Y. ,via Lake Champlain to Whitehall, thence nine miles by teams. The coal for smelting was made from the surrounding forests.

As illustrating the energy and enterprise now brought to this business it may be stated that in 1840 depots for the distribution of these nails were established at Detroit and Milwaukee. Having about this time an opportunity to exchange nails for cook stoves, one thousand were purchased and forwarded to the Milwaukee house.

The business seems to have been in a prosperous state when in March, 1842, the works were consumed by fire, and, suffering as well from the workings of a law then in force in the Slate of New York, known as the "one-third act," which permitted a person to enter bankruptcy upon obtaining the consent of one-third of his creditors, and from the effect of the panic of 1836, as from the loss by the conflagration, and again from what seems to have been a heavier blow to his ambition and spirit than either, the loss of his wife, he abandoned the lease of the iron mills, and for a short time devoted himself exclusively to trade. About 1839 his attention had been directed to sheets of slate obtained two miles north of the village. The characteristics of this slate-color, texture, strength-bore marked resemblance to the Welsh slate then in common use for school slates. No doubt, because of preoccupation, he did not at once begin the work of quarrying; the undertaking was permitted to rest and not abandoned. The plans had so far taken shape in 1842 that he leased from Captain Caleb B. Ranney a plot of land upon which work was begun. This is a portion of what now belongs to the Scotch Hill Slate Company. Here he was in an entirely new field. He wished to manufacture school slates, but no one knew the methods by which the slate should be raised from its bed, and much less with what appliances cheaply transformed into the nicely finished article. At length, finding a man who knew something of quarrying this stone, he went to work, erecting a building adjoining the iron mills, situated upon the upper falls in Fairhaven village, and filled it with machinery of his own invention, which, at the time, proved to be the most efficient and economical then in use in this country or in Europe. The change in the tariff in 1845 opened the American market to the German slates, and the competition became so oppressive as to expel him from the market, and again turning away from his mill and idle machinery, he set himself at work to develop another and less known branch of this industry, namely: the making of slate shingles for roofs of buildings. During the next four years progress was unavoidably slow, owing to numerous causes, among which was the impossibility of securing men of experience in the working of the quarries, and the difficulty and expense experienced from the absence of railroads in distributing the slate. Locally and in nearly all directions shingles were still abundant and cheap. Importations from Wales, it is true, had been going on in the seaboard cities in a limited way possibly during one hundred years, but few indeed penetrated farther inland, and as a result scarcely anything was known of their use or value in all this country outside a half dozen towns.

His resources of will and skill could produce the slates, but now began the struggle of selling and distributing them. The importers of Welsh and other European slates were unfriendly and not only refused to purchase them, but by methods perhaps not less familiar at that time than in this, discountenanced and denounced them. Those engaged in the laying of the slates-the slaters-for the most part old countrymen, listening not more to the importers than to their own prejudices, were backward indeed to take them, and so only by unusual and for the time unprofitable inducements were the slaters brought to favor them. An attempt to set forth the besetments incident to the work of creating markets and educating the people to the values of this new though unequaled roofing, and of organizing a class of men adequately informed in business methods to prepare them for contractors competent and responsible, is not our purpose. Suffice it that during these years, none ventured into the new field of industry, because the reward was only labor without recompense. With the building of the railroad in 1849, of which enterprise he was an active promoter, and of which he was vice-president at his death, he was enabled almost immediately to establish the business upon such a basis as to render it one of the foremost industries in the State. In 1853 he purchased from Jonathan Ca-pen his farm of one hundred and sixty acres one mile east of the village. It proved, as he anticipated it would, to be one of the largest and most excellent deposits upon the entire slate range. The quarry first developed, consisting of twenty-two acres, he sold to the Fairhaven Marble and Marbleized Slate Company, upon the organization of that company in 1869. The remainder of this estate is in the hands of his family, and a number of excellent quarries are being worked. For a number of years previous to his death he could ride from north to south through nearly forty miles, along the borders of two States, and count scores of derricks and watch the profitable labor of thousands and number a thousand homes which were the fruits and to him the bountiful recompense of his early forethought, discernment and enterprise. He lived to see the products of his quarries wrought for a hundred purposes, from the tiny ear-drop in its setting of gold, to the massive stone work in the facade of a building, and to see the quarries of Vermont, in addition to a domestic trade spanning the continent, sending annually to England, Germany and other countries, thousands of car loads. Is it strange that sometimes with this in view, and as he recalled the stubbornness of the conflict with English slates, in his quiet way he would say, " Carrying coals to Newcastle " .' Col. Allen's reputation for energy and sagacity was now 50 conspicuous, that his co-operation was in request when new enterprises were projected. Consequently, when, in 1845, Mr. Joseph Adams, a former citizen of Fairhaven, returning from a residence of a few years in Wisconsin, sought business, Mr. Allen was readily enlisted in the project of erecting a mill for sawing Rutland marble.

Although his means was already considerably absorbed in oilier pursuits, and notwithstanding his contribution was generous, the money and credit at command being thought insufficient to the demands of the new business, Hon. W. C. Kittredge, a lawyer of .eminence and a gentleman of high character and worth, became associated, and the venture was launched under the co-partnership of Kittredge, Allen & Adams. Judge Kittredge, however, contributed neither money nor time, his name alone doing service. Two years later the other partners purchased Mr. Kittredge's interest, and the firm became Allen & Adams. Notwithstanding the watchful care demanded by the slate branch of his now extensive business, he gave to the development of the marble industry that unremitting labor and care which so many others so well know is essential to success. They leased from Francis Slason, of West Rutland, with right of purchase, about nine acres of quarry, the same subsequently and successively owned by Adams & Allen, Parker, Gilson & Clement and at this time by Gilson & Woodfin. Materials for erecting an eight gang mill were accumulated, two miles west of Fairhaven village upon the Poultney River. This site was abandoned before the work of erection began, and a purchase of ten acres made in the village, a. new dam thrown across the stream, that now known as the third or lower dam. This opportune change in locations. Colonel Allen often said determined the fortunes of the enterprise. During ten years, in the fullness of a robust intelligence and staunch manhood, he wrought laboriously and wisely in pushing forward two kindred industries. Since coming into town twenty years before he had been the leading, most of the time the only merchant, alone in the business until 1846, when his nephew, Ira C. Allen, became his partner. Beginning now to feel the draft upon his physique, and also the importance of concentrating his means upon one or the other of the two important enterprises in hand, he determined to sell his interest in the marble, and accordingly he transferred to his nephew just named one-fourth interest in 1851 and the remaining one-fourth in 1854. and in the latter year his connection with the marble trade ceased. Thenceforth he devoted his energy and means to the slate, expanding it as the wants of the people directed, and so filled his years until his seventy-seventh when he retired from active labor. At the time of his death he had been for nine years the president of the Fairhaven Marble and Marbleized Slate Company.

The foregoing are comprehensively the salient points in Colonel Allen's business career, though he was engaged in various minor matters looking to the promotion and the growth of the town.

To convey an impression that he alone was the prompter and promoter of the material achievement so conspicuously noticeable in Fairhaven, is not intended. His associates herein named, sketches of whom appear in this work, were in harmony in purpose and in spirit, and later others, among whom was Mr. Israel Davey, for many years the proprietor of the iron mills, and still others, working together and in harmony, have been worthy and honored contributors to the results. That Colonel Allen was the pioneer in the slate industry of Vermont is not questioned, and it is assuredly not improbable that but for his boldness and courage, to this hour not one slate would have been shaped from Fairhaven to Salem. The place which he fills in the history of the marble industry, if not that of a pioneer, is nevertheless that of one who early and in a marked degree helped to place it upon a remunerative basis. It was his firm which, in 1852, first showed blocks of Rutland marble m New York city. As he had before confronted the importers of roofing slates with those equally valuable from Vermont, so now he confronts importers of Italian marbles with the statuary from Vermont.

Mr. Allen keenly felt the defects of his meager school advantages, but early and always as leisure offered was an industrious reader. He was well informed upon the questions o'f the day. He was a ready and forcible speaker, whether discussing political platforms, advocating social reforms or expounding denominational customs and polity.

Col. Allen received from his fellow citizens repeated recognition of his worth and their esteem. While still a young man in Hartford his military promotion through all grades from corporal to commander of the 175th regiment N. Y. S. M. was rapid. He is spoken of as having been an accomplished and popular officer. He had been in Fairhaven but five years when he was. in 1841, elected to the State Senate, and again in the succeeding year and also again in 1854 and 1855. He was assistant judge of the County Court three successive years, 1860. 1861, 1862, and in 1872 was presidential elector. He has also filled nearly all places of honor and trust within the gift of the town, and it is needless to say that to all and every trust he was faithful to the last.

In politics he was a Whig until the organization of the Republican party, in the work of which he was among the first to move. Judge Dunton, in a public address in 1872, said of him : " He wrote and signed the call for the first meeting held in the State to protest against the abrogation of the Missouri Compromise before that infamous measure, the Kansas-Nebraska bill, had passed. No man in this pan of the State has done more to promote the interest and secure the success of the Republican party than Colonel Allen."

For generations his ancestors had been pious. God-fearing men, and not with standing he did not unite himself with any church until after forty years of age, he fully accepted the teachings of evangelical religion. His denominational predilection was towards the Baptist. It was his profound conviction, almost a part of his creed, that there can be no lasting material growth in a community without a corresponding moral and religious growth. Hence we find that upon coming to Fairhaven, though no church of his " faith and order " was there, at once he enrolled himself for taxation, as was at that time customary, being one of fourteen constituting the Congregational Church society.

The stand thus taken is conspicuously manifest to-day in the prosperity of the churches in town. There being no Baptist Church in town, he united himself with the one at his old home in Hartford in 1841, but still contributing his means and influence to the Congregational Church of his own town. He encouraged and assisted in the building of the Methodist Church in 1844. In 1852 he led the work of organizing a Baptist Church in an adjacent village two miles distant. When, in 1866, in his judgment, the time was at hand for the establishment of a Baptist Church in Fairhaven, he entered upon the work with a full heart and his accustomed zeal and success. Its tine church edifice was erected in 1870. In both of these churches he served as deacon for many years. He was prominent in the Baptist denomination of the State, having for years been the treasurer of its convention and a valued counselor. He was trustee of several educational institutions. All through life he was an earnest advocate of every real reform -intemperance, slavery and all other social evils experienced his hard and continued blows; and as early as 1834 we find him earnestly advocating in public addresses the temperance and African colonization causes. It has been truly and comprehensively said of him " that he was the friend of every good interest."

Colonel Allen was thrice married. His first wife was Juliza Higbee, of Hartford, who died in 1841. She was the mother of five children, all of whom are living (1886). In 1842 he married Mrs. Jane G. (Everts) Reed, widow of Alanson Reed. Mrs. Reed had recently returned from Siam where, as a missionary of the Baptist Foreign Missionary Union, she had gone with her husband in 1835. In 1859 he married Mrs. Mary E. (Baldwin) Hurd, widow of Orville Hurd, of Newark. N. Y. Mrs. Allen is still living in Fairhaven. At this time M. Augusta Baldwin, recently deceased, a loved and cherished daughter of Mrs. Hurd, came into his family.

To speak at length of the traits of Mr. Allen's mind and character is not incumbent after the fullness of this sketch.

A mind judicial in its cast and yet adventurous in its conceptions, of knightly boldness and courage, there was an unusual blending of conservatism and radicalism ; a judgment of uncommon clearness and penetration; a will ready to cope with obstacles or outride disaster; of unflinching integrity ; of an elastic and genial temper, he was grandly equipped for the place he occupied. His rare qualities of heart were even more apparent than those of his mind, sincerity, kindliness, affection, cheerfulness, generosity. Though restless and outreaching in his activity, his tastes were domestic. His home was the citadel of his love. His thoughtful-ness and solicitude, always so noticeable, were not more conspicuous than the reciprocal homage of his household. Notwithstanding all the friction of an eventful life when, at nearly four score, he laid his armor oft, his verdict was that of the true Christian soldier-Life zs worth living. The following, taken from a letter by Rev. Dr. Ellenwood, of New York, corresponding secretary of the Board of Foreign Missions of the Presbyterian Church, so fitly epitomizes the characteristics of Mr. Allen's life that it is here inserted :

" I may truly say that I have known no man in my extended acquaintance for whom I cherish a more genuine regard and esteem than for Mr. Allen. He was so self-governed, so just in sentiment, staunch for his principles, and yet liberal and charitable, so sound in judgment, so loyal to all the claims of society, of the State, of humanity, and above all so loyal to his Divine Master and his cause. I shall not soon meet one so many sided and yet so centralized in the truth. Would there were more such men in this age of terrible corruption and ill omen. May his mantle fall on all of us who know his worth."

Measured by material accumulations Mr. Allen's life was not as conspicuously successful as others of his younger and later associates. It was his lot, one upon which in later life he took pleasure in contemplating, to organize industry and mark out the road on which it should travel. Beginning where he laid his work down, others have and will continue, as was his anticipation and hope, to gather to themselves wealth from the rugged hills and charming valleys of his own county and State.

As he was the consistent friend of workingmen, and of all men, he desired that education, morals and genuine religion should not simply keep pace, but predominate over that less substantial wealth which must perish and pass away.

"I here will lie other towers for thee to build. There will be other steeds for thee to ride ; There will be other legends and all filled With greater marvel and more glorified."

ALLEN, HONORABLE IRA C, the subject of this sketch, was born at Bristol, a small  town at the foot of the western slope of the Green Mountains, on the 4th day of April, 1816. His father. Richard Allen, was a descendant of Timothy Allen, who came from Woodbury, Conn., in 1768 to Pawlet, Rutland county. Vt.; he was a cousin of Ethan Allen. His son, Timothy Allen, jr., was born in 1757 and died at Hartford, N. Y., in 1834. He married Abigail Morse. Their issue was nine children, one of whom was Richard Allen. Timothy Allen, jr.. went to Bristol, Vt., near the close of the last century ; he owned a forge there and a farm, which he carried on until 1815, at which time, having lost his wife, he married the widow of Amby Higby and moved to Hartford, N. Y., where she resided. Richard Allen was born in Pawlet, March 31, 1783. He was twice married ; first Nabby Groat, of Bristol, February 23, 1806, the issue being two daughters, one of whom, Mrs. N. C. Rose, of Peoria, 111., is still living. Mrs. Allen died September 10, 1810, and he married for his second wife Annie Johnson. July 21, 1811 ; she was a native of Ticonderoga, N. Y.

Timothy Allen, jr., was a soldier in the Revolutionary army and fought under Colonel Herrick at the battle of Bennington, when nineteen years old. Richard Allen was conspicuous as a soldier in the second war with Great Britain ; was adjutant in a regiment of Addison county cavalry. His regiment was ordered to the Canadian lines to enforce the embargo, and afterwards returned to Vergennes to aid in guarding the shipping then in process of building for MacDonough's fleet, which was to share a glorious part in the battle of Plattsburgh. When the shipping moved out upon the lake, the troops marched to Burlington, only to find the governor's proclamation ordering them not to leave the State. Richard Allen, with others, then resigned his commission. When Jehiel Saxton afterward called for volunteers in the streets of Burlington, Richard Allen's name went upon the list as the seventeenth volunteer ; he subsequently took an active part in the engagement at Plattsburgh and Saranac Bridge. It will be seen that the subject of this sketch comes from good and patriotic stock. Richard Allen was the father of seven children by his second wife, viz.: Jane, Richard, Ira C, Elizabeth, Lucinda, Willard and Lucy Ann, all of whom reached maturity and all but the eldest are now living.

In compleling a sketch of Mr. Allen we cannot do better than quote the language of Judge C. M. Willard, in an article in the Financier, as follow's : -" The Hon. Ira C. Allen, founder and president of the Allen National Bank of Fairhaven, Vt., is a fair type of the energy, industry, frugality and thrift of the better class of New England business men. Such men are seldom born to the purple and owe little, if anything, to adventitious surroundings or the advantages of scholastic training. The culture and habits born of privation and toil, with the moral and religious culture of a right home life, are a more substantial foundation for a successful life than an inherited fortune. A character thus constituted not only invites success, but survives the storms which not infrequently make shipwrecks of material wealth."

In 1817 his parents removed to Hartford, N. Y., where his father prosecuted the joint business of farmer, tanner and shoemaker. The succeeding eighteen years of the son's life were spent at home, the last six years as an apprentice in the shoe-shop, with the annual respite of three months for attendance at the district school. At the age of nineteen his ambition led him to seek a business of wider scope and larger possibilities than a country shoe-shop. Strange as it may seem to the young men of today, he negotiated with his father for, and actually purchased from him the value of his services for the remainder of his minority, and started out to shift for himself. He entered the country store of his uncle, Alonson Allen, in Livingston county. N. Y., in 1835. and the following year removed with him to Fairhaven, Vt., where he has since resided, with the exception of one year at Whitehall, N. Y. (1844), and another in New York city (1845), being employed as book-keeper in the importing and jobbing dry goods house of Woodward & Terbell. He continued in the employment of his uncle until 1846, when he was received as a partner under the firm name of A. & I. C. Allen. In 1851 he purchased of his uncle one-fourth interest in the marble business of Allen & Adams, the new firm being Allen, Adams & Co. In 1854 he purchased the remainder of his uncle's interest in the marble business and thenceforth the business was conducted under the firm name of Adams & Allen. This was a most fortunate venture, though it involved a heavy indebtedness. They purchased the marble quarry that had heretofore been worked under a lease. This was among the first marble quarries opened in Rutland county and was worked by this firm to the depth of one hundred and fifty feet. He made no mistake in his expectations of the marble business, then in its infancy. He devoted his untiring energy to its prosperity and reaped a large profit there from, until 1868, when the company sold their quarry in West Rutland and he in the following year sold to his partner his interest in the mill and other company property at Fairhaven. Since that time he has made heavy investments in railroads, iron mines, slate interests and real estate, all with exceptional success. He was one of the projectors and also one of the ten original subscribers to the capital stock of the First National Bank of this place ; has officiated there as director, vice-president and president. He was a prominent promoter and investor in the stock of the Fairhaven Marble and Marbleized Slate Company, which was organized in 1869. He served as vice-president of this company from its organization until the death of Colonel Allen, its first president, when he succeeded to the presidency, which office he now fills. He was an original subscriber to the stock of the Rutland and Whitehall Railroad Company; for many years was a director, its treasurer and now its vice-president. He is also a director in the Rensselaer and Saratoga Railroad Company. In 1879, with a few other capitalists, he organized the Allen National Bank and was made its president. In addition to his business cares he has served two terms each as representative, 1861-62, and senator, 1867-68. in the State Legislature, with the same fidelity which has characterized his private business.

He purchased of W. C. Kittredge, in 1866, his dwelling and land on the west side of the park and erected his marble residence in 1866-67. He was one of the founders of and contributors to the Vermont Academy, at Saxton's River, Vt., and for many years has been on the board of trustees.

Mr. Allen is a man of large social qualities, of tender domestic affections, decided religious proclivities and a generous supporter of the church with which he is connected.

Ira C. Allen was married September 19, 1855, to Mary E. Richardson, of Geneva, N. Y. Their children areas follows : Charles R. Allen, born May 5, 1857. Ira R. Allen, born March 29. 1859. Jessie A. Allen, born October 16, 1860. Francis E. Allen, born April 29. 1863. All of these are living. Charles R. Allen was married November 29, 1882, to Jessie E. Dailey, of Hampton. N. Y.; they have one child, Lura Elizabeth, born March 10, 1885. Mrs. Allen died on the 20th of March. 1885, at Jacksonville, Florida.

BAIRD, HIRAM. The ancestors of the subject of this sketch were among the very early settlers in Rutland county. John Baird came into the town of Chittenden in the fall of 1792 and purchased two lots of land which now form a part of the estate of Hiram Baird. He had a son, also named John, who came into the town with his parents, and was the second son of the family. Earl Baird, the eldest of the children, removed to Castleton and thence west. Thaddeus, next younger than John, removed to Ohio a few years after the settlement in Chittenden and died there. David spent most of his life in Chittenden and died in that town. Thomas also lived and died in Chittenden. These sons of the pioneer were all respectable farmers of the town.

John Baird 2d, the father of Hiram, was also a farmer; spent his life in the town of Chittenden and died at the house of his son Rufus, about a mile from the old homestead. His first wife was Rebecca Pearson, daughter of Josiah Pearson, who came to Chittenden from Massachusetts; lived eleven years in that town, then a few years in Pittsford, returning to Chittenden, where he passed the remainder of his life. Mr. Baird's second wife was Harriet Kilburn, daughter of Simeon Kilburn, of Chittenden. His children were Hiram (the oldest and the subject of this sketch), Joel, also son of the first wife, and now living in Chittenden ; Louisa, daughter of the first wife, married Daniel Noyes of Chittenden, who recently died, leaving his widow still a resident of that town ; Lester L., son of the second wife, died at Gettysburgh while serving his country; Charles V., a farmer now living in Chittenden; Jane married M. L. Dow, and lives in Plymouth, Vt.

Hiram Baird was born on the 19th day of November, 1804, in Chittenden, on the farm where he now lives. His youth did not differ materially from that of all New England sons, born of parents who were striving to make homes for their families in the early years of settlement. His educational advantages were not extensive, being confined chiefly to attendance at the district school in winter seasons, and even this ceased when he was about seventeen years of age. He remained at home, sharing the burdens of the farm labors, until he was twenty-one years old, when he hired out to S. Granger & Sons, then operating the furnaces in Pittsford. Three months later he returned home and for two years worked the homestead farm with his father. Succeeding this period he worked the land where Rufus Baird now lives. In the mean time he had married, in the spring after he became of age. Miss Sally Morse, daughter of Jonathan Morse, of Lester, Vt. The tract of land which he first acquired comprised fifty acres, to which he afterwards added another fifty, and worked the tract for five years. At the end of this time, his father having sold the homestead farm, Hiram returned there and purchased it; the farm then contained one hundred acres. To this has been added three hundred acres more, which is now in possession of Mr. Baird and his sons.

Mr. Baird's wife died November 25, 1880. Their children have been as follows: Franklin, born November 6, 1830, died June 3, 1883. He married first Belinda Morse, and second Ida Goodfellow ; they had three children (all by the second wife), who now live with their grandfather, Hiram. Franklin Baird was a man of prominence in the community, and possessed talents and capacity far above the average. He was almost constantly honored by his townsmen with offices of responsibility after he reached manhood. He was selectman two or three years; was town clerk and treasurer fourteen years, and held the office at his death, and represented the town in the Legislature in 1867-68. He, moreover, by his general public spirit and uprightness, gained the confidence and esteem of all who knew him.

The next child of Hiram Baird was Stephen S., born October 2d, 1832; married Mary Hewitt, daughter of Charles Hewitt, and lives in Chittenden, where he is a successful farmer ; their children are one daughter, Nettie, who married Alvin Eggleston and lives in Chittenden, and one son, Horace, who still lives with his parents.

Hiram Baird is an example of the self-made, successful men of Vermont, so many of whom are found in all communities of the State- men who. although they may never arise to eminence. chiefly on account of their surroundings and limited opportunities, yet reach a position in the estimation of their acquaintances which is at once enviable and honorable. Mr. Baird had only passed his majority a short time when he was placed in office - that of constable first ; he then held the office of lister many years; was elected selectman several years ; justice of peace a number of years, and finally declined further election ; town agent and trustee of public money; represented his town in the Legislature in 1866-67, and in various other ways has been tendered evidences of the confidence of his fellow citizens. Mr. Baird has been a successful farmer and acquired a competence in that honored occupation, and now in his old age, still active in body and in almost perfect mental preservation, enjoys the review of a well-spent life.

BAXTER HORACE HENRY, was born in Saxton's River, January 18. 1818. He was the eldest son of Horace Baxter, esq., who was for many years a practicing attorney in Rockingham, judge of probate, and a very popular and eminent citizen of Windsor county. Judge Baxter was in his personal appearance a manly and striking figure, and from him his son, doubtless, inherited that manly, noble look and bearing as well as his affable disposition and engaging manner for which he was distinguished.

General Baxter began life as a clerk in the establishment of Blakes; Appleton in Boston; but after a years returned to Bellows Falls and engaged in mercantile business ; this he continued with indifferent success until about the period of the construction of the Rutland and Burlington Railroad, of which Hon. Timothy Follett was then president. Under his administration Mr. Baxter was awarded the contract for grading the depot grounds at Bellows Falls and the construction of three or four miles of railway near that place. This kind of work was congenial to his taste and ushered him into a series of large railroad enterprises in which he met with the most unqualified success. So efficiently did he perform the work of the small contracts at Bellows Falls, that he was entrusted by the president of the road with the completion of several other contracts on the same line, which had been abandoned by others. This was followed by the award to him of a contract for the grading and masonry on about twenty miles of the Western Vermont Railroad. The remarkable efficiency displayed by him in doing this work gave him prominence as a railroad contractor. Leaving his native State, he went into Northern Ohio and built the Cleveland and Toledo Railroad - a work calling for the most indomitable perseverance, determination in overcoming obstacles, and energy. But in spite of the almost insurmountable difficulties encountered, the road was finished and turned over to its projectors within the contract time. He was now only thirty-seven years old and felt himself capable of coping with any enterprise that might offer. Returning to Rutland, he purchased, in company with two associates, the marble quarries then in possession of William F. Barnes; of this property he subsequently became the sole owner, and incorporated the Rutland Marble Company for the better prosecution of the industry that has since grown to such enormous proportions. Into the working of these quarries he threw his whole energies, and with what degree of success is now well known to all who are at all conversant with the marble industry. In 1861 he was chiefly instrumental in procuring a charter for the Rutland County Bank, against strong opposition. But on account of certain transactions connected with the organization of the bank which he considered questionable, and which resulted in depriving him of the controlling management of the institution, he withdrew his business interests from Rutland, and after selling out his interests in the marble quarries in 1863, returned to New York.

At the breaking out of the great Rebellion, and even before that event. General Baxter saw with prophetic eye the magnitude of the oncoming struggle, and was one of the first to urge his native State to prepare for war. When finally the first body of Vermont troops marched down Broadway, on their way to the front, General Baxter rode at the head of the column. It was largely through his energy and liberality that so fine a body of organized and well-equipped men was so promptly ready for the field, and if he felt a degree of pride in their magnificent appearance on that day, it was justifiable. His liberal support of war measures continued through the struggle, his time and means being freely given up for the success of the cause.

After the sale of his Rutland interests and removal to New York, he made the metropolis his home, passing his summers, however, in Rutland and taking an active interest in everything that promised to advance the welfare of the village and town. Though he was never a politician nor an office-seeker in the smallest sense, he held the office of adjutant-general of the State under the administrations of Governor Fairbanks and Governor Holbrook ; in this capacity he mustered the early regiments that went from the State. He filled the office of selectman of Rutland, and highway-surveyor and took a deep interest in town affairs generally. He was one of the incorporator's of the Evergreen Cemetery and, with a few others, was instrumental in the building of the Episcopal Church. In the year 1858 he erected his mansion in Rutland, which, with its grounds, is one of the finest and most sumptuous homes in the State.

General Baxter's life in the metropolis was one of large activity for a number of years, particularly in the vast operations of Wall Street, where he was intimately associated with the late Henry Keep. It was through their operations that Mr. Keep was made president of the New York Central Railroad, in which position he was succeeded by General Baxter until the property passed into the hands of Commodore Vanderbilt. He also, in connection with Mr. Keep and others, obtained control of the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad, and advanced the price of its stock from 40 to par. In the summer of 1870 he joined Mr. Trenor W. Park in buying the Emma silver mine, in Utah ; in this enterprise he advanced nearly $400,000 in cash. General Baxter purchased the property in good faith, but it proved a very troublesome investment and was, perhaps, the least remunerative of any venture he ever made.

In the period between 1875 and 1880 General Baxter was a director in the Pacific Mail Steamship Company, the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railway Company, the Panama Railway Company and the Continental Bank of New York. He became an early and heavy investor in the stock of the Pullman Palace Car Company and supported that enterprise when few were bold enough to embark in it. It was his custom to keep at his immediate command large sums of money, which enabled him to act promptly in those large enterprises which he was able to grasp and understand so thoroughly. This is shown by his investment of $100,000 in the construction company which built the New York elevated railroads after he had become a confirmed invalid - an investment which brought him a gain of more than 200,000. Such instances of his boldness in financial operations, his clear and accurate judgment and foresight, might be multiplied indefinitely. It was said of him that "he did not know how to make a hundred dollars or a thousand, but he knew how to make a hundred thousand."

General Baxter was a man of broad, liberal and charitable nature ; open, affable and pleasing in his manner, and socially one of the most pleasing of companions ; his home was noted for its generous hospitality. On the 21st of December, 1841, he was married to Eliza Wales, of Bellows Falls, who died September 8, 1849, leaving no children. On the 18th of December, 1851, he married Mary E. Roberts, of Manchester, Vt., who survives him. They had two children - Henry, born May 18, 1856, who died March 20, 1860, and Hugh Henry, born October 2, 1861.

General Baxter died February 17, 1884, in New York. His remains were brought to Rutland for interment, and the entire community and the various institutions with which he had been identified, united in paying respect to his memory through resolutions, addresses and letters.

BENSON, PORTER, the subject of this sketch, was born in Clarendon on the 23d of September, 1833. His father was M. D. Benson, who came into this State from Massachusetts. The boy Porter obtained a good English education in the common schools and at the Black River Academy, at Ludlow. Aside from the time thus spent his years until he reached his majority were spent in hard labor upon his father's farm.

When he reached twenty years of age his father died, leaving a considerable estate, the principal part of which consisted of two farms in the town of Clarendon, one of them being on the hill near Clarendon Springs. The son was deemed the best person to settle the estate and accordingly he was appointed administrator. His father's family consisted of his wife (who was Laura Spring before her marriage, daughter of .Amos Spring, of Clarendon), and four children ; the eldest was Elizabeth, who married Moses W. Kelly, a farmer of Clarendon ; next was Porter; the third, Willis, who now lives in Wallingford ; and Eliza, married A. Jay Newton, a farmer of Clarendon. The settlement of the estate was executed by the son Porter in the best and most satisfactory manner, the farm near Clarendon coming into his own hands, through the purchase of the interest of one of his sisters. On the 1st of January, 1855, he was married to Maria Ripley, daughter of Eleazer Ripley, of Bennington. They resided five years on the hill farm, mentioned, when he sold it and purchased a farm in the Otter Creek Valley, where he spent the remainder of his life and where his widow and her children now reside.

This merely indicates that Porter Benson was one of the great body of successful farmers of Vermont; but he was much more than this. He was possessed of much more than common business and executive capacity, and soon extended his work far beyond the limits of his agricultural pursuits. He began dealing in farm machinery, in which he was unusually successful, and held many of the most valuable general agencies, appointing sub-agents throughout the county; in this way he did a large and successful business, and always to the eminent satisfaction of those with whom he became connected. He thus enjoyed an extended acquaintance in all parts of the county; indeed, there were few men who were better known. The men with whom he dealt came to look upon him as a sort of leader and general counselor in all matters of importance. For example, when the project of sending a milk train from this county to New York was developed, Mr. Benson was sent by his constituents to the metropolis on several occasions, to make all necessary arrangements : and numerous similar instances might be enumerated, showing the confidence reposed in him. Public office was also tendered him until he had held nearly all positions in the gift of his townsmen. He was collector a number of years including the war period, when the duties of that office were peculiarly onerous and responsible, and held the place until he declined further election. He was also constable for a long period ; was selectman at the time of his death, and overseer of the poor. In 1866-67 he was sent to the Legislature, where he was efficient in sustaining the war measures of that period. Republican in politics, he entered with his usual energy into all the necessary labors of recruiting the town's quotas of soldiers, and had more to do. perhaps, in this respect than any other citizen. In short, he was in all respects a popular and successful man. This is further shown by the following brief extract from an editorial in the Rutland Globe published on the occasion of his untimely death :

Porter Benson was widely known and esteemed as a man and a citizen. A man of more than ordinary business tact and capacity, his relations to society and the public have been of a prominent character. As a citizen, he was public spirited and energetic in the promotion of all that pertained to the welfare and prosperity of the town of his residence: in "fact, also of our town and the county and State. In his own immediate community he may be said to have been a leader."

On the 13th of December, 1876, Mr, Benson started from his home to carry his daughter to school in Rutland, In crossing the railroad track at Freight street, his horse became frightened at an approaching engine, shied from the road and the wheels of the carriage struck a pile of earth and snow, throwing the daughter to the ground. As he turned in his seat to see how she had fallen, he seemed for a moment to lose control of the animal, and in another instant he was precipitated to the hard roadway. He was rendered unconscious and continued partly so for three days; and although everything that human skill could do was done for him, he died on the 20th, without ever having spoken after the casualty. His funeral was attended at his home on the 23d, when his remains were followed by a large concourse of his former friends and acquaintances. The funeral sermon was delivered by Rev. Mr. Morse, who paid the deceased the following tribute:

" I address a large number who have known him in the business and social relations ; you know how worthily he walked, and what honor guided his life in all his transactions ; a reputation any man has reason to be proud of. He has held many positions of honor and trust and has always served his fellow citizens faithfully. He has received the homage of the poor and the homage of gratitude from his fellow men."

Mr. Benson was the father of five children, as follow : Amelia L., born December 16, 1856, married Charles Holden, now of Proctor. Hannibal P., born May 20. 1860, married Jessie Webb, of Clarendon, and lives on the homestead with his mother. Elizabeth M., born April 9, 1862. Sarah M., born April 22, 1865, lives at home, Frank M., born August 16, 1874, and living at home.

BOWMAN, JOHN P., is a native of Rutland county, Vt., and was born in the year 1816. His grandfather was one of the early settlers of the town, coming there from the neighborhood of Lexington, Mass., a short time subsequent to the Revolutionary War. He and two brothers came to this country from England. His son, John Bowman, who married Lorinda Hart, was the father of the subject of the present sketch.

Mr. Bowman's boyhood life ran much in the way of that of ordinary New England youth at that period. School advantages were few and much of the time of early years was given to practical industry. At the age of fifteen years he commenced learning the tanning and currying trade at Rutland, Vt. He worked there about five years, when he went to New York State. There he continued at the same trade for eight or nine years at Hunter, in Greene county, Saugerties, Ulster county, and at Warrensburgh, Warren county. At Warrensburgh he was in the employment of Burhans & Gray, hemlock sole-leather manufacturers. The wages received during all this time were very moderate, but he gave himself diligently to his work and became thoroughly proficient in all its parts. For the first year's work at Saugerties he received one hundred and forty-four dollars, only four of which he drew previous to the end of the year. From Warrensburgh he came to Cuttingsville, Vt., and established himself in a general tanning and currying business. For a time he also manufactured and dealt in boots and shoes. He occupied the tannery near Cuttingsville now conducted by Huntoon & Son.

In 1851 he was honored by his fellow-citizens of the town of Sherburne with an election to the Legislature. He served his constituents faithfully and with credit to himself But business was more to his taste than politics and public affairs, and he afterwards neither held office nor sought political preferment.

In January, 1852, Mr. Bowman moved to the town of Stony Creek, Warren county. New York. Here he found water-power and plenty of hemlock bark, but few other facilities or conveniences. This section of country was then new and sparsely settled. The land was uneven, very stony, and not adapted to farming pursuits. Saratoga, the nearest accessible railroad point, was thirty miles distant. There were but two or three small houses, a saw-mill and a tannery, then partly built where the village of Creek Center now stands. Mr. Bowman completed the tannery and put it in operation, commencing then the business of sole leather manufacturing, at which he has since continued. He has added to and improved the tannery, until now it is one of the best in the State. Its capacity is 40,000 sides of leather a year. In addition to the tannery property there are extensive bark sheds, storage buildings, a carpenter and repair shop, a large boarding-house and houses for sixteen families.

He has a commodious and pleasant residence, barns, carriage-house and convenient office. Around his residence there are many shade and fruit-trees, some of the latter being planted by Mr. Bowman's father years ago. Good order and neatness prevail about the whole premises. Consequent upon the growth and development of Mr. Bowman's business enterprise quite a village has grown up in the vicinity, and now churches, school-houses and stores occupy ground that was covered by an unbroken forest when he commenced operations there.

Mr. Bowman has attained an enviable position in business circles where he is well known, and his name is the synonym of the highest honor and integrity. He has acquired a competency and has earned it by his own hard labor, careful attention to business, and the exercise of his best judgment in business affairs. It is worthy of note in this connection that his is one of a very few out of numerous kindred enterprises undertaken in this region of country that has succeeded. Through financial panics and periods of business depression Mr. Bowman has managed his affairs with such sound judgment and conservative methods as to maintain his commercial standing unimpaired.

The parent's grandparents and brother of Mr. Bowman are buried in the cemetery at East Clarendon, Vt., and the place of burial is marked by a stately monument erected by him.

In his domestic life and associations Mr. Bowman has known much of happiness and sorrow. He was married in 1849. His wife was Jennie E. Gates, the youngest of seven daughters of Franklin Gates, of Warren, Herkimer county, N. Y. Mrs. Bowman was peculiarly fitted for the duties and relations which followed her marriage. She was prepossessing in appearance, dignified and graceful in manner, self-reliant and courteous. Her qualities of mind and heart gained for her more than an ordinary measure of esteem and regard among her large circle of friends and acquaintances. She was a member of the Episcopal Church, but her Christian and beneficent work knew no sectarian bounds. To those in less fortunate circumstances than herself she was the kindest and most considerate of friends, always doing her kindly acts in pleasant and thoughtful ways. In her home she was a most faithful wife and mother. It was her aim to make home pleasant and attractive, and she accomplished this as only a truly good and noble woman can. She manifested her devotion to her husband by the most constant endeavors for his welfare, and brought to his aid much of prudent counsel and cheerful encouragement.

Two children, Addie and Ella H.. were born of this marriage. The former died in infancy. Ella attained the age of womanhood and justified the expectations of her parents in the traits of character she displayed. She was given excellent educational advantages, and she carefully improved them. Her personal qualities bound to her the affections of her parents with strong and loving ties. She was more fond of home than other society, and her presence there shed continual sunshine about the family circle. She was much interested in benevolent works, and took real pleasure in making others happy.

Mr. Bowman thoroughly appreciated his pleasant family and found his highest enjoyment in the companionship of his wife and daughter.

In June, 1879, Ella's death threw a heavy pall of gloom over the once happy home. The hope and bright joy of the household were gone. This affliction did not remain the only one. In January, 1880, Mrs. Bowman died, leaving her husband alone to bear a grief made more poignant by the happiness that had preceded it. The remains of his family were taken for interment to Cuttingsville, Vt.

Soon after the death of his daughter Mr. Bowman gave his thoughts to the building of a family tomb, and he devoted much study to the formation of plans and designs for the work. For this purpose he visited different cemeteries and examined many structures of the kind. Soon his idea took definite shape, and early in the summer following Mrs. Bowman's death he began the construction of a mausoleum at Cuttingsville. The general plan of the work was Mr. Bowman's own conception. The hands of skillful workmen wrought out the accomplishment of Mr. Bowman's design and soon brought the work to completion. The mausoleum stands on a plain upon the hillside in Laurel Glen Cemetery. It is quadrilateral in form and is about eighteen by twenty-four feet in its ground dimensions and twenty feet in height. The walls are built of granite, and marble is principally used for the interior work. The exterior is wholly plain, while within the finish and ornamentation are elegant and elaborate. Busts chiseled in purest marble serve to perpetuate the features of the different members of the family. This massive tomb, at once enduring in its strength, impressive and grand in appearance, is but a feeble expression of the great love the husband and father bore his wife and daughters. When the building of the mausoleum was accomplished Mr. Bowman gave attention to its surroundings. He added to the extent of the cemetery, graded the surface of the grounds, ornamented them with shade-trees, arranged grass plots, made gravel walks and carriage drives. A large green-house has been built by him near the tomb, where the rarest plants and choicest flowers are grown. He has erected an elegant summer residence upon a pleasant site opposite the cemetery. The surrounding scenery lends a charm to the spot which has become one of the pleasantest that can be found. Visitors to this sacred scene number many thousands and are from distant as well as neighboring parts of the land.

BRESEE, ALBERT, is the son of Christopher Bresee, jr., who was born near Egremont, Mass., on the 13th of March, 1788. His father, Christopher, sr., came, in 1796, to Pittsford. Vt., and settled on the farm now owned by his grandson, Wallace E. Bresee, the farm having never been out of the family. He died at Bresee's Mills, in Brandon (about one and a half miles from his home), on the l0th of August, 1826, being then sixty-nine years of age. He was the father of fourteen children.

Christopher Bresee, jr., moved about the year 1813 to the farm in Hubbardton now owned by Alexander Walch. On the 8th of July, 1813, he married Clarissa, daughter of Abner Ashley, the first settler on that farm. Abner Ashley died in Bethany, N. Y., January 26, 1838, at the age of eighty-six years. Christopher Bresee became the father of four children : Solon, born April 25, 1814; Merit, born August 17, 1815, and lived but three weeks; Clarissa, born August 8, 1824; and her next elder brother, Albert Bresee, who was born on the 9th of April, 1822. He came with his father March 17, 1837, to the farm on which he still lives, which then contained 157 acres, and which has since been increased to an area of 212 acres. It is the farm settled first by William Rumsey, and owned until 1837 by Chauncey S. Rumsey, now of Castleton.

Here Albert Bresee has passed the greater portion of his life. He has been justice of the peace, selectman two years, lister three years, and in 1878 and 1879 represented the town in the Legislature.

But the fact which reflects the greatest honor on the life of our subject, is the studious and persevering method with which he has devoted his time in the introduction and testing of many varieties of potatoes, and in originating new varieties. He is the originator of the Early Rose potato. He began experimenting with seeds in 1850, and by continued perseverance succeeded in producing varieties with the result mentioned. In 1853 he procured the Garnet Chili, the parent of the Early Rose, from Chauncey E. Goodrich, of Utica, N. Y. The Early Rose was originated in 1861. Since 1850 Mr. Bresee has continued experimenting with seedlings. He also originated in 1862 the Peerless variety, in 1861 the Prolific, and later the Advance, which he deems superior to the Early Rose.

On the 16th of December, 1868, Albert Bresee married Lucy Ann Manchester, then the widow of Lyman J. Gault. Her father, John Manchester, a native of Shaftsbury, Vt., lived for a time in Hampton, N. Y., and before and after in Hubbardton, on the farm now owned by Mr. Train, near the Castleton line. He died in August, 1864. Lucy Ann Manchester was born in Hampton, N. Y., May 9, 1830, and was the fifth of six children : Mary, Arnold, Huldah, Lewis P., Lucy Ann and John. One child. Merit, has blessed the marriage of .Albert Bresee. He was born August 24, 1870.

BRIGHAM, CHARLES WESLEY. Among the early emigrants from Connecticut to Windsor county, Vermont, was .Asa Brigham, who settled in Barnard and became a respected citizen of that town. His family consisted of three children, as follows : .Alden. Chloe and Asa. .Asa removed to the State of Iowa, where he died. Chloe married Zephaniah Sherman, and died in Barnard, aged seventy-one years. Alden Brigham was born October 28, 1796, and died April 2, 1872; he married Lydia L. Smith; she died April 29, 1872; they had four children: Adelia (the eldest), born August 16, 1824, married Ebenezer Walcott, a farmer of Stockbridge; Sarah L., born September 24, 1827. married Augustus Chedell, of Woodstock, who died while in the service of his country in the late war ; Charles Wesley (the subject of this sketch), and Dennis S., born December 9, 1834, and now living in Albany, N. Y.

Charles Wesley Brigham was born May 17, 1831. His early life was passed chiefly on his father's farm, until he was twenty-six years of age. except as he was away at school. After securing such education as was afforded by the common schools of his neighborhood, he attended the seminary at Newbury, Vt. Soon afterward he began the study of medicine with Dr. Virgil Watkins, of Newbury, in 1856, and followed with studies under Dr. .Alpheus B. Crosby, at Hanover (1857-58), attending at the same time the medical department of Dartmouth College, whence he graduated in the fall of 1858. In order to still further perfect himself in his profession, by actual practice in medicine and surgery, he spent nine months at Deer Island Hospital. Boston Harbor. His studies thus completed, he located in Pittsfield in February, 1859, and has remained there in the enjoyment of a very successful practice ever since. Such is the briefest review of the more prominent changes in Dr. Brigham's life, but it does not, by any means, convey an intelligent idea of its more public and active features. He is a Republican in politics, and it sufficiently indicates the position he has won in the confidence and esteem of his townsmen to state that he has been honored with almost every office within their gift. He was elected town superintendent of schools several successive years, an office which he administered with thorough efficiency, thus evincing his deep interest in the cause of education ; he was elected town treasurer several years, and also for a number of years town clerk; was selectman one year; was elected to the General Assembly for 1867-68; was a member of the Constitutional Convention in 1870, and was elected member of the State Senate from the county of Rutland for 1876.

The duties of these various offices, calling as they did for qualifications governing a wide range and of a high order, have been performed by Dr. Brigham with intelligence and good judgment, and to the entire satisfaction of his constituents.

Dr. Brigham's home and business life has not been confined to his profession, although his practice, extending over a large extent of territory in a rural district, has always made a heavy demand upon his time and energies. He has been largely interested in the lumber business for about fifteen years, first in company with Joel Ranney, then with Edward Atwood, and now associated with George Chedell. They own and operate at the present time three saw-mills, producing annually about two million feet of lumber, one in Pittsfield and two in Chittenden ; one of the latter is run by steam-power. He has also erected several dwellings in the village of Pittsfield, besides his own residence, and has in other ways shown his interest in the prosperity of the place. Within the present year he has opened a drugstore, a much needed institution in the town.

Dr. Brigham is a man who is chiefly characterized for sound sense, good careful judgment of men and affairs generally, and a candid, forcible manner, which strongly impresses others with his own beliefs and theories. His foresight in business and political affairs is clear and reliable, a quality to which may be attributed his success in life.

Dr. Brigham has been twice married, first to Mary L. Cox, daughter of George Cox, of Barnard, in February, 1859. By her he has had one son, Frederick L., born July 7, 1862. She died August 27, 1863, in Pittsfield. He married second Sarah L. Cox, sister of his first wife, March 20, 1864. Their only child is George A,, born November 27, 1867. Frederick is studying medicine in Dartmouth College and George A. is attending the Vermont Methodist Seminary and Female College at Montpelier.

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