A HISTORY of REHOBOTH
MASSACHUSETTS

Its History for 275 years
1643 - 1918.

In which is incorporated the vital parts of the
original history of the town, published in
1836, and written by Leonard Bliss, Jr.

By REV. GEORGE H. TILTON, A. M.
Founder of the Rehoboth Antiquarium Society
Minister in Rehoboth, 1877-1902 [last date blurry].

Boston, Mass.
Published by the author.
1918.

Biographies - BOSWORTH to GOFF

[Transcribed by Coralynn Brown]

EDWIN RUTHVEN BOSWORTH Contractor and builder, was born in Rehoboth March 16, 1826. His father was Peleg Bosworth and the family were among the early settlers of the town. Edwin was one of twelve children. He worked on his father's farm and went to school until he was seventeen years old, then went to Providence to learn the carpenter's trade; worked for a year in Fall River and was afterwards employed as a skilled workman for four years at Palmer. In 1850 he started as a carpenter and builder at Palmer, and erected the New London & Northern Railroad Station, and also the Baptist Church of that place. After a time he went West but afterwards returned and lived at Amherst and looked after the construction of the Appleton Cabinet Building. Later he settled in Easthampton and soon came to be recognized as one of the most successful builders in that part of New England. The Town Hall, the Gymnasium, one of the halls of Williston Seminary, the First National Bank Building and the High School were important contructions of his. He also built the First National Bank at Northampton. In addition to being a buider, he was also an architect and civil engineer. In 1873 he was associated with C. W. Richards in the lumber business at Springfield. At Easthampton he was several times elected to the Board of Selectmen. He was a director of the Easthampton National Bank, and was a trustee and member of the financial committee of the town Savings Bank. He was for several years ent to the Massachusetts Legislature. He died at Easthampton, July 18, 1887, in his 65th year. AMOS MILLER BOWEN Was a lineal descendant of Richard Bowen of Rehoboth, 1640. He was born in Providence, Jan. 22, 1838, son of William Bradford and Hannah Boyd (Miller) Bowen. He was educated in the public schools of Providence and was a student in Brown University when he enlisted as a private in Co. A, 1st Regiment Rhode Island Detached Militia, April 17, 1861, mustered in May 2, 1861. He was taken prisoner at Bull Run, July 21, 1861, paroled May 22, 1862, and discharged July 22, 1862. He was commissioned 1st Lieut. Co. C, 2d Regiment Rhode Island Volunteers, Feb. 16, 1863; September, 1863, Acting A. D. C. to Gen. Eustiss, commanding Brigade, and so borne until May, 1864. Mustered out June 17, 1864. Upon his return from the Civil War, he entered the fire insurance business, and was for about thirty-give years president and treasurer of the Franklin Mutual Fire Insurance Company. At the time of his decease he was secretary of the Rhode Island State House Commission. He served six years in the Rhode Island House of Representatives and for nineteen years on the Providence School Committee, two years as its secretary. He was a charter member of St. James Episcopal Church, and its senior warden until his decease. He served as 1st Lieut. of Co. A, 1st Light Infantry Regiment. He was a member of Rodman Post, G.A.R., and of the Massachusetts Commandery of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion. He was awarded the honorary degree of A.M. by his alma mater in 1891 as a member of the class of 1863. He married (1) Caroline Mary Perez of Attleborough, Mass., Nov. 4, 1863, daughter of Manuel Perez (from San Jose, Cuba) and Mary (Witherell) Perez. She died Nov. 12, 1867. Children: (1) William Manuel Perez, born at Attleborough, Mass., Sept. 8, 1864; married Aug. 4, 1900, at New York City, Lucie McMahon Carpenter. (2) Mary Caroline Wheaton, born at Providence, May 28, 1866. He married (2) Eliza Rhodes Henry, of Providence, April 14, 1869. Children: (3) Annie Olive, born April 23, 1870. (4) Richard, born April 8, 1872; married Sept. 18, 1905, Annie Holden Andrews of Providence. (5) Amos Miller, Jr., born Oct. 18, 1873; married Feb. 3, 1898, Mary Turner Aspinwall of Sharon, Mass., who died April 29, 1902. (6) Alice Lindley, born Feb. 15, 1876; married Dec. 25, 1900, Charles W. Low, of Brockton, Mass. (7) Florence Rhodes, born March 12, 1878; married at Colon, Panama, June 9, 1905, Will Adelbert Clader of Philadelphia. A daughter, Hope Miller, born at Providence, Jan. 22, 1909. (8) Lillian Shearman, born May 12, 1880; married Dec. 25, 1911, Ernest Ford Salisbury of Providence. (9) Harold Gardiner, born Nov. 6, 1883; lieutenant U. S. navy; married Sept. 23, 1911, Margaret Edith Brownlie, of Vallejo, Cal. A son, Harold Gardiner Jr., born at Annapolis, Md., Oct. 15, 1912. (10) Marion Henry, born Dec. 30, 1886; married Nov. 8, 1909, Frederick Mason of Providence. Mr. Bowen died at Providence June 3, 1907, and was buried at Lakeside Cemetery, Rumford, R. I. COL. LYNDAL BOWEN Son of Nathan and Patience Lindley Bowen, was born in Rehoboth, Aug. 9, 1804, on the homestaead which had been in the possession of the Bowen family for five generations. As a boy he attended the schools of his native town and helped his father with the work on the farm. He learned the trade of wheelwright, which he carried on later in Rehoboth Village. Col. Bowen was prominent in the Rehoboth Militia. He was for a time colonel of the First Regiment, 2d Brigade, 5th Division, which was organized in June, 1685, and disbanded by the Massachusetts Legislature April 24, 1840. Col. Bowen's commission was dated Oct. 23, 1830. He led this famous old regiment in escorting President Jackson when he passed through Pawtucket, June 21, 1833. Col. Bowen presented the state and regimental colors of this regiment to the Rehoboth Antiquarian Society. He died Sept. 11, 1890. He married Joanna Nichols of Rehoboth, Oct. 4, 1829, and went to live in Rehoboth Village. After a few years he returned to the farm adjoining that of his father and applied himself to its cultivation in connection with the business of wheelwright and wood turner. Eight children were born of this marriage: (1) Nancy Maria, Jan. 1, 1831; married Pardon Bosworth, Aug. 17, 1853, to whom were born Jefferson D., Maria Louisa, George Henry and two other children who died in infancy. (2) Josiah Quincy, June 13, 1833; married Rebecca Ann Smith, Oct. 31, 1858, of which marriage were born: Frank Smith, Elmer Ellsworth, Adelaide Chester, Celestia Day, and Stephen Lyndal Bowen. (3) Granville Stevens, Nov. 10, 1835; married Adaline Dolson, May 31, 1869. Of this union were born: Harry, Abbie Avis, Amy Ann, William S., Cassie Maria, and George Ralph. Died Feb. 7, 1916. (4) Susan Martin, Oct. 24, 1837; married John W. Briggs, Sept. 30, 1875, to whom were born Howard Bowen and Alice Cary. Died Feb. 26, 1918. (5) Anna Elizabeth, Sept. 9, 1842; unmarried. Died Nov. 13, 1915. (6) Henrietta, June 1, 1844; married Joseph W. Baker, June 1, 1880, to whom was born Roger Williams. Died Jan. 20, 1916. (7) David Mendon, July 3, 1847; married Elizabeth Martin, Nov. 2, 1876. (8) Florence Eudora, Oct. 20, 1847; unmarried. REUBEN BOWEN Grandson of Uriah and Esther. Uriah settled in Rehoboth about the middle of the 18th century, and built a saw-mill on the stream flowing through his land, doing business for a number of years in connection with Benjamin Munroe, who was a grandson of Capt. Benjamin Church of Annawan fame. Traces of the old dam may still be seen. Ephraim, son of Uriah, married Rhoda Bates. He was born on the Bowen homestead Jan. 7, 1769, where he lived, carrying on the farm until his death Sept. 17, 1856. Reuben, son of Ephraim and Rhoda, was born in the same house, Oct. 15, 1812. In his youth he worked on the farm, attended the district school winters and, when old enough, learned the carpenter's trade, at which he worked for several years. For a time he was engaged in the manufacture of straw goods in the town of Wrentham, where he met the lady who became his wife. Years before railroads were common in New England, Mr. Bowen made horseback journeys into Northern Vermont and Canada, often in company with Abiah Bliss, Jr., where they would purchase horses and lead them home in groups, a distance of several hundred miles. They also brought down herds of cattle year after year and sold them both for breeding and for the shambles. In many instances these long trips were very fatiguing, and only strong, resolute men could endure the hardships involved. In later years, Mr. Bowen made a specialty of horses and shipped them in car-loads from various Canadian marts. Some of these trading trips were made in partnership with his son-in-law, Seneca Cole. The horses were sold to people in Attleborough, Rehoboth and neighboring towns. The interest in live stock continued in Mr. Bowen's sons, William B. and Murray J., who carry on the farm together. A fine herd of twenty-three Holsteins was destroyed when the barns were burned, Nov. 27, 1900. A new herd of thirty was at once secured whose milk sells readily without addition from other breeds. A yoke of Holstein oxen raised on the farm weighing 4,300 pounds was sold for $400 in 1914 to Andrew Turner of Dighton. Mr. Bowen began selling milks seventy-five years ago in a jug which he used to carry to Providence with a load of wood drawn by oxen. How great the contrast betwen then and now! How rapid and extensive the progress in scientific farming! Having an aptitude for business, he was very successful making investments in various stocks, while he constantly improved his farm which came to be one of the best in town. He had great energy and unusual sagacity. He was a member and constant attendant at the Congregational Church in the Village, and was one of the largest givers for its support. He was gifted in conversaton, keen in repartee, and a genial companion and a firm friend. Mr. Bowen married first, Sarah Ann George of Wrentham, Dec. 4, 1837; died Nov. 1, 1861. They had eleven children: (1) George Reuben, born Nov. 17, 1838; died April 5, 1853. (2) Edward Lawrence, born March 12, 1841; married Mary Lowe of Providence, R. I. March 12, 1867. No children. (3) Harriet Augusta, born July 3, 1845; married William Henry Marvel of Rehoboth, June 25, 1865; died May 29, 1872. He died May 20, 1909. Two children. (4) Ellen Maria, b. April 11, 1843; married George W. Marsh of Providence, R.I., July 27, 1871. He died July 12, 1897. No children. (5) Charles Artemus, born April 10, 1848; married Nancy Peck Bowen, daughter of Otis P. Bowen of Rehoboth, March 3, 1871. Four children. (6) Catherine Walton, born March 24, 1850; married Joseph F. Earle, June 5, 1875. He died May 17, 1912. Four children. (7) Ida Adelaide, born May 27, 1852; died Sept. 14, 1857. (8) Clara George, born Feb. 27, 1855; married Christopher C. Viall, April 14, 1881. Two children. (9) George Warren, born Jan. 26, 1857; married Huldah A. Baker Jan. 19, 1881. One daughter, Luella. (10) Virginia Adelaide, born April 23, 1859; married Oscar Perry, March 27, 1882. Eight children, six living. (11) Sarah Ann, born Nov. 1, 1861; died Feb. 10, 1884. Second wife, Sarah Murray Blanding of Rehoboth, Feb. 23, 1865 (died Dec. 31, 1911). Four children: (12) William Blanding, born Dec. 1, 1865; married Sabina A. (Nichols) Horton, Dec. 6, 1906. Two children. (13) Elizabeth Carpenter, born March 26, 1867 ; married Seneca Cole of Attleborough, Aug. 28, 1890. One child. (14) Murray James, born May 22, 1869; married first, Mary L. Gibbons, Skowhegan Me., Oct. 23, 1894. Second wife, Evelyn E. Bruen of Attleborough, Feb. 17, 1904. One child. (15) Susan Augusta, born Jun 19, 1872; married John C. Kingsford, Nov. 18, 1903. One child. Mr. Bowen died March 20, 1903, aged 90 years. WILLIAM HENRY BOWEN Son of Isaiah and Lydia (Goff) Bowen, was born in Rehoboth Aug. 18, 1819. He was the eldest of three children, a brother, George Washington, with whom he was most closely allied for over seventy years, and a sister Emely Ann, who died at the age of twelve years. Mr. Bowen was educated in the public schools of the town and at the private school of Rev. Otis Thompson. He was much interested in educational matters, teaching in the schools of Rehoboth and Swansea and in later years serving on the Rehoboth School Board. He was a mechanic by trade, as a young man helping his father in the workshop still standing upon the farm where he spent his whole life of nearly eighty-five years. They made handles of axes, chisels and hammers. In the heart of the deep woods, under a bass-wood tree, stood a little mill, the foundations of which may still be seen, where bobbins were turned. There was little machinery and much hand-work. For many years farming was the occupation of the summer months and the workshop the center of winter activities. Mr. Bowen spent his life upon the homestead place, increasing its size by buying land, and he also built, in company with his brother George, a house on the opposite side of the road from the old gambrel-roofed house in which he was born. In 1872 he married Grace L. Patten of Attleborough, Mass., then teaching at the Wheeler School in Rehoboth, whilc he was serving on its committee. Mr. Bowen died March 19, 1904, at the age of eighty-four years and seven months. His widow, Mrs. Grace L. Bowen, a daughter, Emily Bradford (Bowen) Horton, and his aged brother survived him. Mrs. Bowne's daughter by a previous marriage, Hannah M. Patten, married Francis A. Goff, and their son, Lester Goff, a talented musician, plays the organ at the Village Church. WILLIAM MANUEL PEREZ BOWEN Practicing attorney, and an official in Rhode Island corporations of note, was born in Attleborough, Mass., Sept. 8, 1864. He is a son of Amos Miller Bowen, who was a soldier in the Civil War. The family are descendants of Richard Bowen, who emigrated from Glamorganshire, Wales, in 1640, and was among the first settlers in Rehoboth. Richard Bowen's ancestry (Owen) descended from the Welsh princes and Henry Tudor of the English Tudors. Maternally, Caroline Mary (Perez) Bowen (mother) descended from the Spanish and Cuban families of Perez and Capote. The earliest ancestors are of various colonial origin, including the Mayflower through the Fullers; and many members fought in the Colonial Wars, War of 1812, and Civil War. W. M. P. Bowen received a liberal education in the schools of Providence, later entering Brown University, and was graduated therefrom, A. B. 1884, and A. M. 1887. He thereupon took up his law studies and was assistant clerk in the County Court, Providence, from 1884 to 1901. He began practice of law in Providence in 1901, and since that time has been engaged in general practice before the State and Federal bar, and is a standing master in chancery. Mr. Bowen was a member of the Providence School Committee in 1899, and was elected a member of the Rhode Island House of Representatives, 1902-05-06, and State Senator from Providence, 1909-10. He was member (1909-12) of the Special Taxation Committee, which revised the tax-laws of the state. For some years he has been chairman of the Republican City Committee of Providence. Mr. Bowen is a member of St. Stephen's P. E. Church; life member of League of American Wheelmen, and active in promoting good roads. Also author of important state highway legislation. Member University Club, Quarter Century Club, Rhode Island School of Design, Sons of the American Revolution, Military Order of the Loyal Legion, and United Train of Artillary. Past Rhode Island Division Commander, Sons of Veterans; Colonel First Light Infantry Regiment, 1911-13, and on retired list Rhode Island Militia training camps at Plattsburg, N.Y., 1915 and 1916; thirty-second degree Masona and Shriner. Since 1897, secretary of the Providence Building, Sanitary and Educational Association; secretary Pascoag Water Company; President U. S. Ring Traveler Company, Providence. CHARLOTTE WRIGHT (PECK) BROWN Daughter of Sylvanus and Charlotte Wright Peck, was born in Rehoboth, March 15, 1808. She gained the rudiments of learning at the district school known as the "Palmer's River School," or district number eight. She was an apt pupil, acquiring a taste for good reading and became a diligent student of the Bible. She married, Oct. 7, 1827, Eleazer A. Brown, and resided for several years at the "Shad Factory." Later her home was in Rehoboth Village. She united with the Village Church, July 3, 1830, under the pastorate of Rev. Thomas Vernon. Mrs. Brown was a woman of great energy, and was foremost in every worthy enterprise in both the church and community. She did more than any one else in promoting the Bicknell High School. While her own family was large, there was always "room for one more," and ministers and teachers often enjoyed her generous hospitality. Though sorely afflicted in the loss of her children, she bore her many trials without a murmur. As the bitter mingled with the sweet in her life, she could ever say, with unwavering trust in her Heavenly Father, "Thy will be done." She was not only optimistic, but kind and sympathetic. Many a sick-room was cheered by her presence, and the passage of many of one down the dark valley was made smoother by her gentle touch. She passed away April 11, 1888. A brave, gentle, noble woman! ELEAZER ARNOLD BROWN Was born in Cumberland, R. I., Aug. 13, 1800. He was third in a family of ten children. His father was Eleazer and a native of Cumberland, a respected citizen, a farmer and a cooper by occupation. In the days of the militia he held the office of ensign in the Diamond Hill Company. His mother was Elizabeth Cole, daughter of John Cole who went from Rehoboth, where his ancestors had settled. Elizabeth had few advantages for culture, but she was a woman of great firmness, and her children were trained under a strict discipline. Both father and mother died at the advanced age of 84 years. The father, Eleazer, was the son of Nicholas Brown, who was a man of energy and ability. At the age of eighteen, Nicholas took his musket and started for Concord, and fought in the battle of Lexington; here he so injured his ankle that the leg had to be amputated, and he ever after wore a wooden leg. He was a chief elder in the Quaker church; he married Susanna Arnold, whose father was one of the proprietors of Arnold's Mills. Nicholas had seven children of whom Eleazer was the second. The father of Nicholas and great-grandfather of the subject of our sketch was Jabez Brown of Smithfield, R.I. His wife was a Whipple and they lived in a little house on Molasses Hill, on the banks of the Blackstone, where they brought up seventeen children. From these facts we see that Eleazer was descended from a hardy New England stock. Until he was fourteen he lived at Cumberland with his parents, working on the farm summers and attending school winters. He always remembered the stern old school-master, Arnold Speare, whose heavy ferule kept the boys on a straight line. When he was fourteen the family moved to Georgiaville and Eleazer was put into the factory to tend spinning-frames. He worked two years at two dollars a week, when he became master-spinner and his wages were increased. After two years more, he went into the factory store, and soon had charge of it. Continuing for four years and a half, he then went to Providence at the age of twenty-two and started a store on his own account. It was located on North Main Street, next door to St. John's Church. After about two years experience he concluded that he was better adapted for mechanical than for mercantile business. He sold out to a Mr. Hawkes, a watchmaker, in 1824, and went to Branch Village, Smithfield, R.I., as a superintendent of a factory, where he remained only a short time. In the winter of 1824, he attended the academy at Uxbridge, and afterwards went into Philip Allen's factory in Smithfield as second hand in the card-room, where he first met Benjamin Peck, who was superintendent of the mill. After two years he went with Mr. Peck to Rehoboth and took charge of the card-room at the Orleans Mill. "There," he says, "my taste for machinery was gratified." The mill then employed from twenty to twenty-five hands. Sept. 17, 1827, he was married by Rev. Thomas Vernon to Charlotte Wright Peck of South Rehoboth, with whom he lived happily for more than sixty years. On Jan. 3, 1830, they both united with the Village Church on confession of faith. In 1836, he left eh Orleans Factory, and after four years at Woodstock, Ct., came to Rehoboth Village, where he became manager and afterwards part owner of the Factory property. He resided here until his death, June 1, 1889, and was a respected citizen and an honored deacon in the Congregational Church. He was ordained to this office March 4, 1841. Deacon Brown was a man of unusual intelligence. He had an original way of putting things and was very quick at repartee. His language was choice and exact; he knew what he believed and could express his ideas clearly and unequivocally. He was very fond of machinery, and spent a large part of his time in making or mending something. He invented a machine for twisting or winding twine, the idea coming to him in his sleep. He was emphatically a religious man, and a thorough student of the Bible. When very old, he went to church leaning on his cane until he could scarcely totter to his place. He died May 30, 1889, in his 89th year. He had eleven children, most of whom died young. Three sons served through nearly the whole period of the Civil War: (1) Edward Payson in the Fourth R.I. Regiment, breveted major for gallant conduct; became a prominent lawyer. (2) Arnold DeF., second lieut. in the Third R.I. Cavalry. (3) James P., became second lieut. in the Fourteenth R.I. Heavy Artillery (colored). Killed in battle. MAJOR EDWARD P. BROWN Born on Feb. 8, 1840, was son of Dea. E. A. and Charlotte W. (Peck) Brown. He prepared for college at Rehoboth High School, Thetford Academy, Vt., and the University Grammar School of Providence, R.I. Entered Brown University in 1859; enlisted Aug. 31, 1862, with commission of 2d Lieut. in Co. I, 4th R.I. regiment; later promoted to 1st Lieut., to Captain, and to rank of Major by brevet, for gallant conduct in battle. Returned in 1865, finished his course at Brown, graduating in 1867; graduated at the Harvard Law School in 1869; began the practice of law at North Attleborough, Mass., and removed to Boston in 1870; for three years was chosen member of the General Court from Boston; conducted the noted case of Gen. B. F. Butler, then Governor of Massachusetts, vs. the managers of the Tewksbury alms-house, and won the verdict of acquittal on the charges made by the Governor. He became a well-known lawyer in Boston, and later practiced law in New York. Major Brown married first Miss Emma I. Clapp, of Boston, in 1866, by whom he had three children: Edith, Ethel and Harold. Mrs. Brown died in 1888. He married for his second wife, April, 1892, Elizabeth E. Hough of New York, who survives him. He died July 26, 1909, and is buried in Woodlawn Cemetery, N.Y., where a fine monument marks his resting-place. JAMES BROWN Son of John of Wannamoiset and Dorothy, admitted freeman at Plymouth, 1636, at Taunton, 1643, and at Rehobothn, 1658; married Lydia Howland, daughter of John Howland of the Mayflower. Like his father, he was liberal in religious matters and a warm friend of Rev. John Miles, with whom he was fine 5 pounds for setting up a Baptist meeting in Rehoboth in 1667. He was one of the seven charter members of the Miles Church formed that year in connection with the new town of Swansea. Mr. Brown was the foremost citizen of the town; he had been Governor's assistant in 1665 and 1666, and between 1670 and 1675; was deputy to the Plymouth Court from Swansea in 1668, '71, and '72. He was active in Philip's war, and on June 14 and 15, 1675, went to Philip to persuade him to be quiet. He would have been killed by the excited Indians had not Philip prevented it, saying that his "father had requested him to do no harm to Mr. Brown, as he had received repeated kindnesses from him." He doubtless lived on his father's large estate at Wannamoiset and is buried at Little Neck. JOHN BROWN The ancestors of the Brown families lived in the south and west of England, and emigrated to Boston and Plymouth between the years 1620 and 1692. Peter Brown, the first-comer, was of Puritan stock, and came in the Mayflower in 1620. John Brown became acquainted with the Pilgrims at Leyden, prior to 1620. The year of his arrival in America is unknown, probably about 1630, as we find him elected a freeman in 1634, and in 1636 an assistant to the Governor of Plymouth, an office which he held by annual election for seventeen years. Mr. Brown was a man of large intelligence, great energy of character, and deep and earnest piety. He was a grand pioneer in the settlement of the towns on the west of old Plymouth. In 1636 he was a resident of Duxbury. We find his name among the purchasers of the tract of land called Cohannett, or Taunton, in 1637, and he with Miles Standish erected bounds around the purchse in 1640. During the next year he was one of the company to purchase Rehoboth, and his interest in that township was the largest of any, amounting to six hundred pounds. Prior to June 9, 1645, he had removed to Rehoboth, for we find his name first with six others who were chosen to order the prudential affairs of that town for six months. His son James removed from Taunton with him, and his son John followed in 1647. In December, 1645, Mr. Brown Sr., became sole proprietor of the section known by the Indians as Wannamoiset, and Wannamoiset Neck (now Bullock's Point and Riverside) which originally included a portion of the present towns of Rehoboth and Swansea, with a portion of Barrington and the south part of Seekonk and East Providence. His name appears on all of the important committees of the town. Now he was chosen to carry on a suit at the Court; afterwards "to make diligent search to find out the most convenient way between Rehoboth and Dedham"; then he, with Mr. Peter Hunt, was ordered to go to Plymouth, "to make agreement about the Indian complaints," and various other records of public duties, which indicate his prominence and ability as a citizen of the town and of the colony. His liberal sentiments on religious affairs were positive, and as a colonial magistrte he expressed his scruples as to the propriety of coercing the people to support the minister, and offered to pay all delinquencies from his own estate. In 1643 the colonies of Plymouth, Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Haven united in a confederacy, styled The United Colonies of New England, for their common defence and welfare. Each colony sent two commissioners to the meetings of this body. Mr. John Brown represented Plymouth Colony for twelve years, and was associted in these deliberations with such men as John Winthrop, Gov. Haynes, Mr. Eaton, Mr. Bradstreet, and Gov. Winslow. In this body he exercised a large influence, and served the colony wisely and faithfully. He was captain of the Swansea militia, and built the house in which he lived till his death, on the main road, near Riverside, East Providence. He died April 10, 1662, and was buried at the Little Neck Burial Ground, near Bullock's Cove. His widow, Dorothy Brown, was buried there; she died at Swansea, Jan. 27, 1674, aged ninety years. His daughter, Mary and her husband, Capt. Thomas Willett, with other descendants, were buried in this ground. Mr. Brown left three children: (1) Mary, who married Capt. Thomas Willett. (2) John Jr., who settled with his father in Rehoboth. (3) James Brown, who was one of the most influential men in the founding of Swansea, as well as one of the leading members of Mr. Miles's church. WALTER DeFOREST BROWN Son of Arnold DeForest and Amanda M. (Horton) Brown, was born in Rehoboth, Nov. 6, 1861. In addition to the district schools of Rehoboth, he studied at the State Street Intermediate and Benefit Street Grammar Schools of Providence, R.I.; also two years at the Rogers High School at Newport. After a commercial course at the Bryant and Stratton School in Providence, at the age of ninetten he became entry clerk of the wholesale grocery house of Bugbee & Brownell, remaining four and a half years. He was next employed in the wholesale grain house of Messrs. Day, Sons & Co. on Dyer Street for about the same length of time. In 1899 he became bookkeeper with the National India Rubber Co., holding this position until 1904, when he was elected secretary, and in 1905 he was honored by being chosen treasurer also, and faithfully performed the duties of both offices. This large company employs about nineteen hundred people, carrying on an extensive business and requiring a man of large capactiy to conduct its finances. Mr. Brown was married in 1883 to Martha T., daughter of Edward D. Jones, Jr. of Newport. One daughter, Viola T., was born to them Aug. 27, 1888. She married Harold Van Gaasbeek, Aug. 20, 1913. Their daughter Barbara was born Sept. 7, 1915. Mr. Brown was a member of Capital Lodge, I.O.O.F., of Providence, having passed through all the chairs. He was a member of the New England Order of Protection and several other fraternal organizations; also a member of the Washington Park M.E. Church of Providence. He possessed in a high degree those sterling qualities which insure success - business sagacity, power of mental concentration, a sound moral character, and unfailing coutesy. On Dec. 9, 1910, the community was shocked to learn that early in the morning while duck-hunting, he had been drowned in the icy waters of Bristol harbor. Funeral services were held in the church of his native village attended by a large circle of friends and he was buried in the family lot beside his father, an honored veteran of the Civil War. JOHN ALLEN BUFFINTON Was the son of Benjamin Buffinton and Mary Mason of Swansea, Mass. He was born in Warren, R.I., Jan. 24, 1810, and reared and educated in Swansea. He learned the mason's trade and followed it in Providence, Fall River, and Newport. Later in life he became a resident of Milford, Mass., where he lived until 1857. He then removed to South Rehoboth, Mass. Here he carried on farming on the Bosworth homestead, known as Stone Cottage. He had married Ann Eliza Winsor Cousins Bosworth, born Aug. 7, 1815, in Smithfield, R.I., daughter of Peleg Bosworth 2d, and his wife Susannah Rounds. To them were born children as follows: (1) John Murray who died in infancy. (2) John Murray 2d, born April 1, 1839. (3) Frank, born Feb. 9, 1841. (4) Dunbar Harris. (5) Walter Smith. (6) Allen Mason. Mrs. Buffinton was a direct descendant in the eighth generation of Edward Bosworth, who with wife Mary embarked for New England on the ship "Elizabeth and Dorcas" in 1634. He, however, died as the vessel was nearing the port. His remains were interred in Boston. Mr. Buffinton, originally a Democrat, became a Republican with strong anti-slavery principles, retaining to the last an active interest in public affiars. Mr. and Mrs. Buffinton were members of the First Universalist Church of Providence. Later they became closely identified with the Universalist Society of Swansea, in which they were deeply interested. Mr. Buffinton died at his residence, Stone Cottage, Aug. 22, 1893, and Mrs. Buffinton on Dec. 19, 1902. JOHN MURRAY BUFFINTON Son of John Allen and Ann Eliza Winsor Cousins (Bosworth) Buffinton, was born April 1, 1839, in Providence, R.I. He attended the public schools of Rehoboth, the Seekonk (Mass.) Academy, and the High School of Milford, Mass. At eighteen he was apprenticed to Sackett, Davis & Co. of Providence, manufacturing jewelers, and entered upon the business in which he has continued to the present time. In 1869 Mr. Buffinton went into partnership with Col. Isaac M. Potter, with whom he remained until the death of the latter in 1902. He then formed a corporation under the name of the Potter & Buffinton Company (Inc.), of which he is president. Mr. Buffinton represented Providence in the lower house of the State Assembly in 1888-9. For a number of years he was a director in the Roger Williams National Bank, until its absorption by the Industrial Trust Company. He is a member of the Pomham Club, Providence Central Club, and charter member and past master of Adelphoi Lodge, No. 22, A. F. and A. M., also a member of St. John's Commandery, R.I. For many years he was president of the Society of the First Universalist Church, and for over a quarter of a century a member of the board of trustees. On June 4, 1874, Mr. Buffinton married Helen Augusta, daughter of Henry and Ann (Kilvert) Carrique, and granddaughter of Lieut. Richard and Elizabeth (Martin) Carrique. To them were born children as follows: Anna Carrique, John Allen, Henry Kilvert (deceased), Henry Carrique (deceased), and Bertha Augusta. Mrs. Buffinton died Oct. 25, 1911. Mr. Buffinton retains as his summer residence the old Bosworth homestead, Stone Cottage, in Rehoboth, and while his business activities are centered in Providence, has never ceased to be interested in the welfar of the town. JUDGE STEPHEN BULLOCK Son of Samuel and Anna (Bosworth) Bullock, was born in 1735. His descent from Richard Bullock, one of the earliest Rehoboth proprietors, is as follows: Richard (1), Samuel (2), Ebenezer (3), Samuel (4), Stephen (5). He married, Oct. 30, 1760, Mary Horton, daughter of Hezekiah Horton of Rehoboth, and resided near Burial Place Hill. He was one of the most prominent men of his day, a captain in the War of the Revolution, a representative to the General Court in 1782-6, and in 1796 was representative to Congress; in 1797-8, a member of the convention appointed to form the State Constitution, and also judge of the Court of Common Pleas. Judge Bullock was a man of sound judgment, retentive memory and genuine piety. He had ten children, sixty-seven grandchildren, and two hundred and four great-grandchildren. Among his descendants are Darius Goff of Pawtucket, Ex-Governor John W. Davis of Rhode Island, Albert C. Mason of Franklin, Mass., and Hon. George N. Goff. He died Feb. 2, 1816, aged 81 years. Mary, his wife, died Aug. 29, 1830, aged 92 years. They are buried at "Burial Place Hill." WILLIAM DEXTER BULLOCK Civil engineer; born in Rehoboth, Mass. April 17, 1850; son of William K. and Hannah G. (Carpenter) Bullock, descendant on both sides of the family, of early settlers in Rehoboth; graduated Warren (Rhode Island) High School, 1869; A. B. Union College, 1871. Married, 1st: Annie A. Taft of Pawtucket, R.I., Oct. 15, 1879 (died October, 1899); 2d, Florence S. Clapp of Providence, R.I., Feb. 26, 1902; two children: Anna Carpenter, William Clapp. Connected with survey of Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Ry., 1871; with city engineer, Lowell, Mass., 1871-2; on Northern Pacific Ry. surveys in Washington, 1872; in city engineer office, Providence, since 1873; chief engineer of State Harbour Improvement Commission since June, 1911; member Rhode Island House of Representatives, 1886; member American Society Civil Engineers, Boston Society Civil Engineers, National Geographic Society. Republican. Protestant. Club: Congragational (Rhode Island). Home: 75 Keene Street; Office, City Hall, Providence, R.I. BENONI CARPENTER, M.D. Son of Caleb and Hannah (George) Carpenter and grandson of "Capt." Caleb, a Revolutionary soldier, was born March 12, 1805, in Rehoboth (so Bliss and "Vital Record," but see Newman's "Rehoboth in the Past," p. 89). He graduated at Brown University 1829; M.D. at Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, 1832; married Adeline Everett of Wrentham June 4, 1833; practiced medicine in Rehoboth, Seekonk, North Attleborough, and after 1860 in Pawtucket, where he died Nov. 24, 1877, aged 72. He represented the town at different times in both branches of the Legislature. During the Civil War he was surgeon in one of the Rhode Island regiments. DR. DARIUS CARPENTER Son of Daniel Carpenter, was born in Rehoboth (Seekonk) Oct. 4, 1783; studied medicine with Dr. George A. Bolton of Seekonk. Commenced practice there in 1816; married Anna Carpenter of Seekonk, Nov. 9, 1817. Died of consumption July 16, 1833. DRAPER CARPENTER, M.D. Son of Daniel and brother of Dr. Darius Carpenter, was born in Rehoboth, Dec. 30, 1791; marriec Caroline Bassett, Sept. 11, 1837; graduated from Brown University in 1821, and received a medical diploma from the same institution in 1824. Commenced practice in Pawtucket in 1827. ROYAL CARPENTER, M.D. Son of Caleb and Elizabeth (Bullock) Carpenter, both of Rehoboth, was born in Rehoboth, May 17, 1778; married Elvira Wheeler, June 1, 1834; graduated at Brown University in 1805; studied medicine with Dr. Isaa Fowler of Rehoboth, whom he succeeded in 1808, and practiced medicine in his native town till his death, May 23, 1849. For many years he lived in the same house Dr. Fowler had occupied, known as the "Aldrich house," on the corner opposite the Otis Thomspon parsonage and about fifty rods from the "old red school-house." Here his son, DeWitt C., was born. On his gravestone the following words are inscribed: "The tears and lamentings of the afflicted, but especially of the suffering poor who never sought his aid in vain, will be a more lasting tribute to his memory and virtues than any epitaph of his friends." COL. THOMAS CARPENTER Also designated as Thomas Carpenter 3d, was born in Rehoboth Oct. 25, 1733. He was the son of Thomas and Mary (Barstow) Carpenter. He married Elizabeth Moulton of Rehoboth, Dec. 26, 1754. They had twelve children, serveral of whom died young. He lived on the Bay State Road, nearly opposite the town house, on the farm now owned by George Nichols. He was prominent in town affairs, and in the Revolutionary War commanded a regiment which included many Rehoboth men. He was on duty at White Plains, N.Y., and for several months was stationed on Rhode Island. He was a firm patriot and was opposed to Shay's Rebellion. He was a man of large size and mental capacity and highly esteemed. He became an extensive owner of real estate, and in 1784 purchased of Abraham and Eleazer Bliss, sons of Abraham (1697 - 1787), their property at "Bliss's Mill," since known as Rehoboth Village. On this privilege, where the Blisses had operated a grist-mill and saw-mill, four son of Col. Carpenter in 1809 built the Village Factory. They were James, Thomas, Stephen and Peter. Their father is said to have given each of them a farm: To James he gave the homestead at the mill, afterwards owned by William Marvel and his descendants. To Thomas he gave the home on Carpenter Street, which descended to his son Christopher and his granddaughter Delight R., who married Harvey G. Reed 3d of Taunton. The property is now owned by W.B.H. Dowse. To Stephen he gave the so-called "Carpenter Homestead," located on the Bay State Road, opposite the Grange Hall, and still occupied by his descendants. To Peter he gave his own home place, where Peter's four daughters were born: Caroline, who married Dea. Asaph Carpenter; Nancy, who married Col. Cyrus M. Wheaton; Rosella, who married James Perry; and Alice, who married Bradford Horton. Col. Carpenter died April 26, 1807. WILLIAM BLANING CARPENTER, A.B. Son of Phanuel and Lucy (Blanding) Carpenter, was born in Rehoboth (Seekonk) Aug. 15, 1809; graduated from Brown University in 1829 with salutory addresses; studied medicine with Dr. Usher Parsons of Providence; died Jan. 3, 1830. Was a student of great promise. CAPTAIN BENJAMIN CHURCH Was born at Duxbury, Mass. in 1639, and died at Little Compton, R.I., Jan. 17, 1718 (new style), in the 78th year of his age. He was the son of Richard and Elizabeth (Warren) Church. Richard was a freeman of Plymouth Colony, and fought in the Pequot War in 1637, with the rank of sergeant. Benjamin married Miss Alice Southworth and had five sons and a daughter. He was at first a noted scout and afterwards a brave captain in King Philip's War. He was later sent on several expeditions against the eastern Indians, first as major and then as colonel. In about 1702 it seems that he held the office of lieut.-colonel in the 1st regiment of the Bristol Co. Militia, although there is no roster of the Militia of that period in the state archives. He died from the effects of being thrown from a horse. The inscription on his gravestone at Little Compton is as follows: "Here lieth interred the body of the Honorable Col. Benjamin Church, Esq. who departed this life January the 17, 1717-18 in the 78th year of his age." Church's "History of Philip's War" was published in 1816. It was dictated by the aged veteran to his son Thomas, who was his amanuensis. As he had a prominent part in the events he describes, his story, although diffusive, is vivid and realistic. He had special qualifications as a fighter of Indians, being brave, alert, and familiar with their methods of warfare. DANFORTH LUTHER COLE Son of William, born in Rehoboth, Jan. 29, 1834; mararied June 11, 1862, Adaline M. Tallman. Mr. Cole was by trade a carpenter and became a well-known contractor and builder in the city of Providence, the business being conducted under the name of Glover & Cole. The Conrad Building, the Atlantic Mill, and the Dimond Block were erected by this firm. Mr. Cole was a member of the Unity Lodge, I. O. of Odd Fellows, and highly respected for his integrity. He retired early from business and died Nov. 1, 1900, leaving two children, Martha A. and Frank W., who, with their mother, removed in 1907 to the ancestral homestead in Rehoboth. FRANK WILLIAM COLE Son of the former, born in Providence, R. I., April 8, 1863. He chose civil-engineering and surveying for his profession and entered on his work with every prospect of success, but an attractive business career opening, he changed his plan and engaged in teaming on a large scale in the city of Providence, R. I., doing a business of $40,000 a year, with fifty horses at work. In 1907, after twenty years of business, he retired to the Cole farm in Rehoboth. Here in addition to tilling the soil he has done some excellent work in surveying and drafting. His plot of the Village Cemetery is a fine sample of his industry and skill. In religion Mr. Cole is a Unitarian and was for some years a prominent member of the Westminster Unitarian Church in Providence. He is a member of the Nestell Lodge, A. F. and A. M. The Cole lineage is traced as follows: Frank William (9), Danforth Luther (8), William (7), Aaron (6), born at the Cole homestead Jan. 8, 1758; married Alse (or Elsie) Crossman of Taunton, intention March 24, 1783; died Jan. 13, 1837. Aaron (5), born March 5, 1728; married Huldah Butterworth, March 21, 1750; built the Cole homestead in 1757; died April, 1799. John (4), married Mercy Perry, July 7, 1722, and settled in Rehoboth near the present homestead. John (3), born March 6, 1760; married Mary Lewis; died Dec. 13, 1746. John (2), born in Yarmouth, July 15, 1644, married Ruth Snow, Dec. 10, 1660; died Jan. 6, 1725. Daniel (1), born 1614, married Ruth ____, removed from Yarmouth, Mass. to Eastham in 1643, where he held the offices of constable and selectman, died Dec. 21, 1694. WILLIAM COLE Born in Rehoboth, Nov. 26, 1784, on the Cole homestead; son of Aaron; married Jan. 25, 1824, Alce (Alice, in Vital Record) Allen Monroe. He was a ship carpenter by trade and worked a number of years at St. John, N.B. He was a captain of infantry in the war of 1812. He and his wife were both prominent workers in the Irons Free-Will Baptist church at Briggs Corner in which he held the office of deacon. He died Nov. 27, 1855, aged 71. His widow, a woman of rare worth, survived him for many years, and died Jan. 22, 1880, aged 86. ELISHA DAVIS Son of John and Nancy (Peck) Davis, and brother of John W., was born Nov. 27, 1831, on the Davis homestead in Rehoboth, where he resided until his death, April 24, 1904. He was educated in the public schools; became a practical farmer and a much respected citizen. He was for many years one of the towns' selectmen, and in 1870 was elected to represent his district, Berkley, Dighton, Rehoboth and Seekonk, in the State Legislature; besides which he was justice of the peace, and was employed to settle many estates in probate. Mr. Davis married, July 3, 1855, Etherinda Munroe of Rehoboth, daughter of Burden and Lydia (Baker) Munroe, a woman of rare excellence. They had issue: (1) Elisha Thomas, born Sept. 1, 1856. (2) Daniel Everett, born Jan. 26, 1860; died Sept. 1900. Lydia B. D. (Bixby), born Oct. 1, 1864. JOHN WILLIAM DAVIS Son of John 3d and Nancy (Peck) Davis, was born at the paternal homestead in South Rehoboth, March 7, 1826. He was a descendant in the seventh generation from James Davis who came to this country from Marlborough, Wiltshire, England, in 1630, and settled in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and the family were among the early settlers in Rhode Island and Southeastern Massachusetts. Mr. Davis spent the first eighteen years of his life on the farm and attended the public schools of his neighborhood. In 1844 he left home to learn the mason's trade in Providence, devoting six years to that occupation, working at his trade in the Southern states and teaching school winters. In 1850 he opened a grain store on South Water Street in Providence, where he conducted a successful business as a grain and flour merchant for forty years, closing his active mercantile life in 1890. His business career was marked by vigorous energy and straightforward, honest dealing. In politics he was a Democrat and deeply interested in the affairs of the town, state and nation. He was appointed by President Cleveland in 1886, appraiser of foreign merchandise for the Rhode Island National Customs District. In 1887 he was elected Governor of Rhode Island, and again in 1890. He represented his adopted city, Pawtucket, in the State Senate in the years 1885, 1886 and 1890. Mr. Davis, while not a fluent speaker, was a man of large, round-about sense. His convictions were strong and his expression of them open and candid. He was of the common people, and they appreciated his worth, and Rehoboth is honored by his illustrious career. He died Jan. 25, 1907. Mr. David married: (1) Lydia Wilbur Kenyon of Hopkinton, R.I., Sept. 18, 1855, who died April 28, 1859. One child, Annie Elma, died in infancy. (1) Emily Potter Goff of Providence, R.I., who died July 11, 1885. Three children: Frank Ellsbree, born July 19, 1866, died Oct. 23, 1880. Annie Elizabeth, born Oct. 22, 1868. Mary Emily, born July 18, 1870, married Erving Y. Woolley, Oct. 12, 1897. (3) Martha P. Pierce of New York, Feb. 18, 1895, died in Charleston, S.C. May 10, 1902. HON. JAMES ELLIS Was born in Rehoboth, son of the Rev. John Ellis, pastor of the Newman Congregational Church; graduated at Brown University 1791. Commenced the practice of law in Rehoboth (now Seekonk); removed to Taunton and held the office of County Attorney. Married Martha Bridgham of Rehoboth, Oct. 14, 1794. ISAAC FOWLER, M.D. A prominent physician in Rehoboth before and at the beginning of the ninteenth century, was born Aug. 3, 1760, probably at Northbridge (at that time Uxbridge), as several of his brothers lived there and most of the Doctor's medical students came from Worcester County. He married, March 30, 1786, Vashti, daughter of Deacon John Brown of Rehoboth. They had twelve children. Their daughter Julia married John B. Marvel of Dighton who communicated to the writer most of the facts in this sketch. Among the young men who studied with him was Dr. Royal Carpenter, who lived in his family at the time of his death and succeeded him in his practice. Dr. Fowler was enthusiastic in his profession. When an epidemic of small-pox broke out in the community and no one could be found to care for the sick, and vaccination was new and suspected, he showed his own faith in it by vaccinating one of his elder daughters and taking her to the hospital to care for his patients. His medicine chest with its multitude of little drawers was a miniature drug-shop. Dr. Fowler was an active Free Mason and master of a lodge at the time of his death. The fraternity had a memorial printed on white satin, of which the following is a copy: "Sacred to the Memory of Dr. Isaac Fowler Who died March 8th, A.D. 1808 In the 49th year of his age. He was eminent in his profession And highly esteemed For his humanity and benevolence." The manner of his death was peculiar. One day Cromwell Bliss, whose horse was young and spirited, was going to a funeral and asked Dr. Fowler to exchange horses with him for the day, which he did. (In those days people usually rode on horseback). Coming home late in the afternoon from a visit near Oak Swamp, he overtook Mr. Bliss at the top of a hill not far from the Galen Nichols place, and invited him to ride behind. As his feet touched the horse's sides, he became frightened and ran down the hill. Mr. Bliss slipped off and soon the Doctor was thrown, striking on his head and fracturing his skull. A trepanning operation was performed, but without success, and he died on the third day, leaving a widow and twelve children. Mrs. Fowler was a very amiable and capable woman and brought up her numberous family in a most creditable manner. Dr. Fowler died March 8, 1808, in his forty-eighth year (Aug. 3, 1760 - March 8, 1808). Mrs. Fowler died April 18, 1832, in her sixty-sixth year. SAMUEL METCALF FOWLER Son of Dr. Isaac and Vashti (Brown) Fowler, was born in Rehoboth, Sept. 13, 1805, one of twelve children. His education was limited. He learned the printer's trade in Providence and early evinced special talent for newspaper work, putting his thoughts directly into type. Bliss, who compares his style to that of Junius, says of him: "His fancy was sprightly and fertile, his thoughts luminous, and his language forcible and appropriate." Although his sarcasm was often keen and bitter, he had many friends who recognized his brilliant gifts. He was for several years editor and proprietor of the Pawtucket Chronicle, "which he conducted with great ability and spirit." He died of consumption, Aug. 26, 1832, in his twenty-eighth year. WALTER BLISS FROST Now of Providence, but formerly of Rehoboth, is a direct descendant of two old colonial families. Elder Edmund Frost settled in Cambridge in 1635. Thomas Bliss settled in Weymouth, Mass. in 1636, and became one of the founders of Rehoboth in 1643. Walter Bliss Frost is doubly descended from this Bliss pioneer, his grandfather, George Bliss, son of Dr. James Bliss, having married Lois, the daughter of Deacon Asahel Bliss. Mr. Frost's mother, Lois Maria Bliss, as a school teacher in Rhode Island, met and married William Frederick Frost, son of William R. Frost, a prominent manufacturing jeweler of Pawtucket. Walter Bliss Frost was the youngest of four children. He was born in Providence, Aug. 24, 1852. His parents died during his infancy, and he was reared to manhood on the farm of his grandfather, George Bliss, in Rehoboth. At the age of twenty-two he entered school at the East Greenwich, R.I. Academy. He prepared for college in two years, and passed the entrance examinations for Brown University in the class of 1880. That summer he engaged as a reporter with the Providence Evening Press, and being twenty-four years old he concluded not to go to college. He remained with the Providence Press Co. for nine years, serving in all positions from reporter to night editor, and managing editor of the Sunday edition. In October, 1885, he engaged as editor of The Manufacturing Jeweler, a trade paper published in Providence for the jewelry trade, and has continued in that position until now (1918). In 1893 he became proprietor of the paper, which is an important weekly publication of national and international scope. He has been connected as a member and officer with many trade clubs and associations, including the Rhode Island Press Club, the New England Trade Press Association, the National Editorial Association, and others. He has been on the Providence School Committee continuously since 1905, and is chariman of the committee on high schools and a member of the executive committee. When a boy he joined Annawan Lodge of Good Templare, which met at the Village Church in Rehoboth. Later in life he rejoined the order in Providence, and soon rose to the head of the Rhode Island Grand Lodge. In 1902 he was one of the American delegates to the international convention of the order in Sweden. On that same visit he witnessed the coronation procession in London on the occasion of the crowning of King Edward VII. Mr. Frost has been an extensive traveler in this country, as well as in Canada and Mexico. He has owned several racing yachts, and is a member and ex-president of the Washington Park Yacht Club. He owns the fast "Medric II" which has won scores of cups and prizes. He is also a member of the Turk's Head Club, the Economic Club, and the Town Criers. On August 13, 1876, Mr. Frost married Alice A. Barber of Windsorville, Conn., and they have two sons, Walter Louis Frost, a lawyer in Providence, and Harry Barber Frost, who is associated with his father in business. Walter B. Frost's elder brother, Henry Frederick, enlisted in a New York regiment in 1861, at the age of sixteen, died in Virginia on Feb. 29, 1864, and is buried in the Village Cemetery at Rehoboth. JOHNSON GARDNER, M.D. Son of James and Susannah Gardner, was born in Rehoboth, Nov. 22, 1799. His course at Brown University was shortened by ill health. He studied medicine with Dr. Lewis Wheaton of Providence and received the degree of M. D. at Brown University in 1826; commenced practice in Pawtucket in the same year; married, June 8, 1829, Phebe Lawton Sisson, only child of Aaron Sisson of Seekonk. CHARLES BRADFORD GOFF Was a direct descendant from Robert Goff who came from England and settled in Dighton, Mass., early in the eighteenth century. The line of descent is: Robert (1). Enoch (2), born in 1740, became a preacher and died March 10, 1810, aged 80 years. Shubael (3), 1761 - 1833. Shubael (4), born March 4, 1783; known as "Captain Shubael", married Sally Briggs Goff of Rehoboth and lived many years on the "ministerial place," where they brought up fifteen children, thirteen of whom lived to maturity. He died Oct. 14, 1854, and his wife "Aunt Sally" died Nov. 4, 1855. Shubael (5), was born in Rehoboth, Aug. 31, 1808; married Elizabeth Martin Ripley in 1833; moved to Fall River in 1836. Charles Bradford (6), the subject of our sketch and son of Shubael (5), was born March 4, 1834, in Rehoboth. He graduated from Brown University in 1856, the valedictorian of his class. He married, Aug. 26, 1857, Almira J. Bean, in Providence, R.I. Five children were born to them, of whom two with their mother survive: (1) Robert Remington, a teacher in the Fall River High School where his father taught. (2) Mrs. Jennie Martin, wife of Frederick R. Martin of Providence. Mr. Goff (of Phi Beta Kappa rank) received from his alma mater the degree of PhD. He was a trustee of Brown for ten years before his death. For thirty-five years he was principal of the classical department in the "English and Classical School" in Providence, where more than two thousand pupils came under his influence. He was joined by William A. Mory in 1864, and the school came to be popularly known as "The Mory and Goff School." Mr. Mory says of his colleague: "His teaching was always thorough and correct and his discipline eary and efficient." Mr. Goff died Dec. 1, 1898. No better epitaph could be written for him than this: "Charles Bradford Goff, Teacher." DARIUS GOFF A pioneer in the establishment of new and important manufacturing industries in this country, was born in Rehoboth, May 10, 1809. He was the son of Lieut. Richard and Mehitabel (Bullock) Goff. His father was a manufacturer and in 1790 built a fulling and cloth-dressing mill on the east branch of Palmer's River, furnishing it with the best of machinery. His mother was a daughter of Hon. Stephen Bullock. His grandfather was Joseph Goff, and his great-grandfather, Richard, who came from Barrington. The children of Lieut. Richard and Mehitabel Goff were: Richard, Otis, Horatio, Patience, Nelson, Darius and Mary B. Darius Goff was educated at home and in the common schools. In 1809 the Union Manufacturing Company had been formed at Rehoboth Village, in which the elder Goff was a partner whose task was to color the yarns to be made into cloth. At an early age Darius entered his father's factory and assisted him in the coloring department until 1826, when he served six years as clerk in the grocery business at Fall River and Providence. Returning to Rehoboth in 1835-6, he and his brother Nelson bought the Union Cotton Mill for $4,000, and began to manufacture cotton batting. Here they invented the apron process by which wadding could be made in an endless sheet or roll. Mr. Goff also became interested in the cotton waste business, purchasing the waste of the Lonsdale Cotton Company and continuing the contract for many years. In 1846 he formed a partnership with George Lawton of Waltham and commenced dealing in waste paper stock on Gray's wharf in Boston. About this time Mr. Goff moved to Pawtucket. In 1847 he erected a large wadding-mill near the railroad station and made wadding in connection with the paper stock business in Boston. In 1859 Goff & Lawton dissolved, the latter taking the Boston business. Mr. Goff then united with Cranston & Brownell of Providence, and carried on a general business in paper stock and wadding. In 1870 the Union Wadding Company was formed and its output increased enormously. The plant covers many acres, and the capital stock is said to be two and one-half million dollars, the largest wadding plant in the world, with Lyman B. Goff, treasurer. In 1861 Mr. Goff and his associates commenced the manufacture of worsted braids, then a new industry in this country. After a hard struggle with adverse conditons, the business, through protective legislation, became an immense and flourishing branch of industry, and finally, under the name of D. Goff & Sons, attained world-wide fame, verifying the familiar ad. of early days: "Goff's Braid Is the Best Made." Another striking achievement of Mr. Goff was the founding of the mohair plush industry in this country. Up to 1882 no plus goods such as are used in upholstering car-seats, etc., were made in America. Mr. Goff determined to undertake their manufacutre and sent a skilled mechanic to France and Germany to learn what he could about the business, and to buy needed machinery. But the agent could do nothing, as the work in the factories was carried on with the utmost secrecy. Mr. Goff being thus thrown back upon his own inventive resources, pushed forward a series of experiments behind closed doors for five years, when behold! he had a loom which would produce a plush fabric as fine as any in the world. In the end this industry proved not only profitable but added to the prestige of American manufacures. Another textile industry instituted by Mr. Goff in connection with Mr. Joseph Ott was the Royal Weaving Company, whose factory is in Central Falls. This company produces cloth for coat-linings of fine, imported yarn. Mr. Goff was not only a wise and progressive manufacturer, but an honored citizen. He was a director of several banks and companies and in 1871 was elected State Senator. He was a prominent member of the Congregational Church and gave largely for its support. When in 1884 Mr. Goff was asked by some friends in Rehoboth to aid them in erecting a building for an antiquarian room, library, school, and hall, he responded liberally, giving for the enterprise to the extent of $10,000, which more than duplicated the amount given by people of the town, and so the first Goff Memorial was built, and on Mr. Goff's seventy-seventh birthday, May 10, 1886, was dedicated. Mr. Goff, having retained the use of his strong faculties in a remarkable degree to the last, died at his home in Pawtucket, April 14, 1891, closing a career of great usefullness and honor. The National Association of Wool Manufacturers, of which he was a member, paid earnest tribute to him for his "pre-eminent services in the diversification and extension of the wool manufacture, to his high character as a man, his large public spirit, his conscientious discharge of every obligation to society, and the earnest devotion to principle by which his life and actions were governed." Mr. Goff was twice married: (1) Sarah Lee, a daughter of Israel Lee of Dighton. (2) Harriet Lee, her sister, by whom he had three children, - Darius L., Lyman B., and Sarah C., who married Thomas Sedgwick Steele of Hartford, Conn. ELLERY L. GOFF Town clerk, son of George L. of Rehoboth and Harriet N. Reed of Taunton, was born in Taunton, April 17, 1858, his parents soon after moving to Rehoboth, where he was brought up. For his occupation, Mr. Goff has combined insurance with work on the farm. He served in the Massachusetts Legislature in 1910-11; was chosen secretary of the Rehoboth Antiquarian Society, March 12, 1902; was appointed town clerk, April 22, 1893, in which office he served till the present (1918) time. He married Miss Mary E. Tyrell, Feb. 25, 1886. They have one daughter, Elsie, born July 12, 1888, who married Enoch A. Carpenter, Feb. 2, 1909. Of these a son, Ellery Winsor Carpenter, was born March 29, 1910. GEORGE HIRAM GOFF Was the son of Cromwell and Ruth (Goff) Goff, and grandson of Abel Goff. He was born on the home place, Perryville Road, Sept. 27, 1830; married April 2, 1854, Hannah (Cook) Lilley of Providence, R.I. She was born Dec. 6, 1834, and died Dec. 6, 1905. He spent his life in Rehoboth with the exception of three years in Mansfield, Mass., and two years in Davenport, Iowa. He was a prosperious farmer, constantly improving his land and premises. He gave generously to the needy, but without ostentation. He had three children: (1) Arthur Cromwell, born in Rehoboth, Sept. 8, 1859; marriec Carrie F. Goff, Aug. 13, 1882. Two children: Lizzie May and Harold Arthur. (2) George Dwyer, born in Davenport, Iowa, Jan. 28, 1864; married (1) Lizzie M. Thompson, Nov. 18, 1886, who died April 24, 1894; (2) Julia A. Franch of Pawtucket. Three children: Marion French, George Dana, and Doris R., died July 4, 1906. (3) Lizzie Mason, born April 17, 1874, and died Sept. 7, 1877. Mr. Goff died Nov. 30, 1900. HON. GEORGE NELSON GOFF A descendant from Thomas Goff, the first Deputy-Governor of Massachusetts, sworn into office with Governor Craddock, March 23, 1628. The first Goff to be made a freeman by the General Court was one John, May 18, 1631. But the first Goff mentioned in the Vital Record of Rehoboth was Richard, who married Martha Toogood, both of Swansea, [Barrington in Vital Record] Mass., July 19, 1722. Their son Joseph, born Dec. 12, 1725, married Patience Thurber, October, 1748. They resided on Thurber farm, now known as the Goff homestead, a well-known hostelry in Revolutionary days, where the Goff Memorial now stands. They lived together seventy years and had fourteen children, one of whom, Richard, was born in 1749, and married 1795. They had seven children. One of these, Nelson, was born May 5, 1804; married Alice Lake, April 20, 1837. Their only son, George Nelson, was born in 1837; married Julia Bishop Horton, June 2, 1858. She died March 30, 1914. They had two children: Albert C., born Dec. 6, 1858, and Alice Augusta, born Oct. 19, 1866; died Dec. 9, 1913. Albert C. married (1) Anna E. Carpenter, Dec. 22, 1886, and (2) Lizzie M. Carpenter, May 1, 1890. They have four children: Clinton Nelson, born Feb. 10, 1893; Annie Carpenter, born June 25, 1895; Eleanor Elizabeth, born Oct. 7, 1901; Royal Bishop, born June 23, 1907. Three generations of this family have been prominent in manufactures at Rehoboth Village (see sketch of Darius Goff). George Nelson has always resided on the paternal homestead and has carried on the farm in connection with his son. He was an officer in the Congregational Society for more than forty years, and is president of the Rehoboth Antiquarian Society and member of the Old Colony Historical Society. He has a predilection for politics; has held various town offices and represented the tenth Bristol district in the Legislature in 1885, and was state senator in 1903-4. He is a staunch Republican, and his influence in determining the candidates for town, state and even national honors has been potent. For many years he has been the center of a group of high officials, meeting at his home or at the annual clam-bake, to plan the party campaigns, causing his name to be well-known throughout Bristol County and even beyond its limits. In 1858 he was agent for the first horse pitch-fork in New England, invented by Charles E. Gladding of Pennsylavnia. HAROLD ARTHUR GOFF Is the son of Arthur C. and Carrie F. Goff, and grandson of George Hiram and Hannah C. Goff. He was born in Rehototh, Jan. 18, 1887. He attended the public schools of the town and graduated at the Bryant and Stratton Business College in June, 1904. He married, June 11, 1913, Annie Rothermel of Berkley, Mass. He resides on the home farm, which he carries on in connection with his father. They built their new and commodious house in 1904. Mr. Goff is a member of the Rising Sun Lodge, No. 30, A. F. and A. M., of East Providence, R.I., also a past master of Annawan Grange of Rehoboth, and was appointed a deputy of the Massachusetts State Grange, June 1, 1914. ISAAC C. GOFF, D.D. Was the son of James, of Nathan, of Constant, etc. "I was born," he writes, "in a house nearly central I should say in the township, about one mile from Rehoboth Village and on the east side of the turnpike leading from Provicence to Taunton, on the 28th of October, 1808, and resided in the same house until September, 1820, when the family moved to Genesee County in New York. Although I was but twelve years old at the time of the removal, I had worked out two summers, and at the same place. I worked for Elijah Bliss, my father's nearest neighbor, for $4.00 per month the first, and $5.00 for the second year. It was a good place, plenty of hard work, good fare, and kind treatment. I remember the following families then living in the town, and as ranging in numerical importance about like this: Carpenters, Blisses, Goffs, Cases, Pecks, Bowens, Keltons, Hortons, Lewises, Wheelers, Perrys, Davises and Bosworths. With at least eight of these families, the Goff family was connected by intermarriage. There was neither father nor husband in any of these families who was a drunkard, profane, or a Sabbath breaker." When Mr. Goff was sixteen years old he made a profession of faith in Christ, and believing that he was called of God to preach the Gospel, he soon began to prepare for his great life-work in which he continued until he had reached the ripe age of seventy-eight. He had a singularly pious ancestry. Not only his father, James Goff, but his grandfather, Nathan, was a devout man. He was ordained at Royalton, N.Y., in September, 1827. For a time he labored as an evangelist, and after pastorates in New York and Illinois, he was for twenty-nine years pastor of the Christian Church at Irving, N. H. He was an able preacher, and a man of strong and symmetrical character. He was at one time president of the Biblical Institute at Standfordville, N.Y., and a permanent member of its executive committee. He died in December, 1886, in his seventy ninth year. Deprived of the advantages of a liberal education in youth, he nevertheless read and assimilated vast stores of knowledge. His children were: Frederick, Lizzie, James, Oliver, Mary and Helen. A fine crayon portrait of him was presented to the Rehoboth Antiquarian Society by his daughters, which no hangs in the Blanding Library. ISSAC LEWIS GOFF Financier, son of David Fish Goff and Clarissa Dean (Stacy) Goff, was born in Taunton, Mass., Aug. 29, 1852. He spent his early life on his father's farm in Rehoboth, in the Long Hill neighborhood, where he received a common school education. At the age of sixteen he took the course in the Bryant and Stratton Business College in Providence. After holding several positions, he entered the real estate office of Wm. D. Pierce in that city where he remained about four years. He then established a real estate and insurance business of his own. He began the vast enterprise of building up Washington Park in 1891, and saw it grow from a single house to more than seven hundred houses in a decade. In politics Mr. Goff has been a prominent Republican, a delegate to the National Convention 1892, and carried the electoral vote of Rhode Island to Washington in 1896. He is a thirty-third degree Mason, and a member of the Grand Loge, I.O.O.F., also a member of the Elks, Knights of Pythias, Sons of the American Revolution, and of several clubs. Mr. Goff is an enthusiastic admirer of good horses, and has owned some of the fastest racers, including "Birhg Regent" (2: 6 1/4). Personally, Colonel Goff is a gentleman of courteous manners toward all. He is calm in emergencies, and his easy, natural manner makes him friends wherever he is known. On Oct. 21, 1875, he married Ada Jannette Richards of Providence. The four children of this marriage are: William David Goff, Josephine Anna Goff, Lillian Lewis Goff, and Isaac Lewis Goff, Jr.