Part 22

Of course, while working on the farm more or less, he had, for five or more years, the advantage of a good school, kept at the village by "Master" Henry H. Orne (D. C. 1812), of severe discipline and good scholarship, who supplemented the public school with a private one each autumn. Mr. Orne was a very successful teacher, and among the associates of John McDuffee in this school were Thomas C. Upham, Nathaniel G. Upham, John P. Hale, and Noah Tibbetts. In 1818, at the age of fifteen, the boy entered Franklin Academy in Dover, the first day of its existence, Thomas E. Sawyer and Richard Kimball being among his associates, and Rev. Mr. Thayer being its principal. Here he fitted to enter college as sophomore, but returned home, and, at the age of eighteen, he went into the store of his uncle, John Greenfield, at Rochester. It was a large country store, where everything was sold. After two years' experience, being only twenty years of age, he began the same business for himself on the same square; was successful, and, after two years, took into partnership his uncle, Jonathan H. Torr. During this period he was commissioned postmaster of Rochester, being not of age when appointed, and he held this office until removed on Jackson's accession to the presidency.

In the spring of the year 1831 he went to Dover, and began the same business on a broader scale, first in the Perkins block, and, in the autumn, as the first tenant of the northern store in the new Watson block, on the Landing, Ira Christie his next southern neighbor. This locality, now at an end for such purposes, was then the place of business and offices. Steady success continued to reward his energy and industry; but in February, 1833, selling to Andrew Pierce, Jr., he returned to Rochester to settle the large estate of his wife's father, Joseph Hanson, who, dying in December previous, had made him executor. Mr. Hanson, whose daughter Joanna (by his marriage with Charity Dame) Mr. McDuffee had married June 21, 1829, was one of the three old and wealthy merchants of Rochester, Nathaniel Upham and Jonas C. March being the other two. The settlement of this extended estate and business was completed, and the accounts settled, by Mr. McDuffee's energy, in seven months; and it caused his entire abandonment of trade, although he had been eminently successful.

There was no bank in Rochester. Old traders had some connection with the Strafford Bank in Dover, and the Rockingham Bank in Portsmouth. They loaned money, instead of getting discounts. Mr. Hanson's safe, where he kept all his securities, was a small brick building back of his store, with a sheet-iron door fastened by a padlock. He kept some deposits, however, in Strafford Bank, and was a stockholder in that and in the Rockingham Bank. The three principal traders used to go to Boston twice a year, on horseback, to buy goods. Mr. McDuffee saw that a bank was needed. He prepared the plans, secured signatures, obtained a charter from the legislature in 1834, and the Rochester Bank was organized with ninety stockholders and a capital of one hundred thousand dollars, later increased to one hundred and twenty thousand dollars, with one hundred and thirty stockholders. Of the original ninety, only two besides Mr. McDuffee now survive. On the organization he became cashier, his brother-in-law, Dr. James Farrington (member of the twenty-fifth congress), being president. This bank was the frontier bank, no other existing between Rochester and Canada, and it was the first bank which the counterfeits from Canada naturally but uselessly struck. It was a favorite of the people, and was so managed that its dividends were eight or nine per cent. It is well known that the business was really left to the probity and skill of its cashier. Cashier for twenty years, on the then renewal of its charter, Mr. McDuffee resigned the cashiership in favor of his son Franklin, and became president. The bank did not become a national bank until 1874, and in the six years previous he and his son formed the house of "John McDuffee & Co., private bankers," took up the old bank's business, and successfully carried it on. In 1874 they merged it in a national bank, the one being president and the other cashier, as before, and the two taking two-fifths of its stock. It is an interesting fact that no bill has ever been issued by either Rochester bank without the well known signature of John McDuffee, either as president or cashier; and he still actively administers the interests of the bank he originated in another form forty-eight years ago.

In addition to this Rochester interest, Mr. McDuffee was one of the original grantees of the Dover National Bank, and for a short time was a director; but his interest became more in the Strafford Bank, at Dover, of which (new charter) he was the second heaviest stockholder, Daniel M. Christie being the first. He became a director in the Strafford National Bank in 1870, and still actively holds that position. The stock of this bank (par, one hundred dollars) has this year sold at one hundred and sixty dollars.

The Norway Plains Savings Bank, at Rochester, was chartered in 1851, and Mr. McDuffee became its treasurer, being succeeded by his son Franklin in 1867, and himself becoming president,--an office in which he still remains. It is worth, recalling, that, although this bank was ordered, in the panic, to pay out only five-sixths of any deposit, it subsequently petitioned for leave to pay, and did credit to every person affected, the remaining sixth.

Mr. McDuffee early saw the advantages of manufacturing to a community. By his own means and a liberal allowance of banking facilities he has greatly aided their development, the first such enterprise in Rochester, the Mechanics' Manufacturing Company, being decided to locate there by the new banking facilities. Mr. McDuffee was a director. It was a manufacture of blankets, and its successor is the Norway Plains Manufacturing Company. The original company Mr. McDuffee carried safely through the crisis of 1837. The mill-property at the Gonic Mr. McDuffee bought in 1845, to lease to N. V. Whitehouse, that business might not be given up. He held his purchase for about ten years. The effort was successful, and the property was eventually taken by a joint stock company. Stephen Shorey, owning some facilities for manufacturing at East Rochester, came to Mr. McDuffee to see if the bank would advance means to build. Mr. McDuffee at once pledged the means, and the mills were built. A stock company afterwards purchased mills and machinery, and the thriving village of East Rochester owes its prosperity to Mr. McDuffee's liberal policy. Thus have been developed the three principal water-powers of Rochester.

Mr. McDuffee's personal interests in manufacturing were also in the Great Falls Manufacturing Company, in whose great business he was a director for four years; capital, one million five hundred thousand dollars. In 1862 he bought large interests in the Cocheco Manufacturing Company, and has there remained. Since 1874 he has been a director of that corporation. As such, he advocated the erection of the great mill, now No. 1, and the replacing of all the old buildings by new and magnificent mills, unsurpassed in the United States,--a work now rapidly progressing. The remarkable success of this company certifies alike to the sagacious boldness and the considerate policy of its directors.

The need of railroad facilities at Rochester was early apparent to Mr. McDuffee. In 1846 he entered into two enterprises,--the Cochecho road, from Dover to Alton Bay, and the Conway road, from Great Falls to Conway. Each was to and did pass through Rochester. In each road Mr. McDuffee was the largest individual stockholder, and of each was the first treasurer. When the Conway road reached Rochester, Mr. McDuffee resigned its treasurership. The other road, after various difficulties, became the Dover & Winnipesaukee, by the incorporation of the bondholders, and Mr. McDuffee continued to be a director. With "friend" William Hill, he visited Boston more than thirty times to treat for the lease of this road to the Boston & Maine. The effort was finally successful, and the road, by itself weak, became a fine piece of property. Rochester was thus doubly accommodated; but another avenue was needed, and Mr. McDuffee took part in the Portland & Rochester, which secured a route eastward, of which road he was a director; and he invested liberally in the Rochester & Nashua, which opened a line to the West. The result has been that Rochester is a "billing-point," and its various manufacturing interests have felt its impetus.

The beauty of "McDuffee block" in Rochester, built by him in 1868, exhibits the owner's public spirit. It is an elegant brick building of four stories, containing six stores, twelve offices in the second story, a public hall in the third, and a Masonic hall, one of the finest in the state, in the fourth. In the use of the public hall the liberality of its owner to benevolent objects is well known. As a Mason, he joined Humane Lodge on the very day he became "of lawful age."

Of other real estate, Mr. McDuffee has, besides various pieces in Rochester, including such as the Gonic farm, the New Durham "powder-mill" estate of nine hundred acres of land and eleven hundred acres of water; and in Barrington, two hundred acres on Isinglass river, held with a view to future manufacturing needs.

In religion, Mr. McDuffee was brought up under good old Parson Joseph Haven, and has remained a liberal supporter of the Congregational society. In politics, he was an earnest Whig. His first vote was for the electors who chose John Quincy Adams president, and his postmastership was ended by Andrew Jackson. He has always been a decided Republican.

Mr. McDuffee's great amount of labor has been possible only by the vigorous constitution which he inherited. The boy, who, before he left home, "carried the forward swath" in the hay-field, made the man who now accomplishes an amount of work which would surprise many younger men. Monday is always given to the Strafford Bank, at Dover; Tuesday, he presides at the Rochester Bank meeting; Wednesday, at the Savings Bank; and no day is idle.

Of Mr. McDuffee's happy domestic relations nothing need be said. Of his eight children,--naming them in the order of birth,--(1) Joseph, who followed the sea, died (single) on the ocean at the age of thirty-five. (2) Franklin, who graduated at Dartmouth College in 1853, died, after a successful financial career, November 11, 1880, greatly lamented; he married Mary Fannie, daughter of John Hayes, of Farmington, and left two sons, John Edgar (now in the Chandler Scientific Department of Dartmouth College), and Willis. (3) John Randolph, graduated at the Chandler Scientific Department in 1857; was a civil engineer in Rochester, and died single, aged twenty-five. (4) Anna M., is the wife of Frank S. Brown, of Hartford, Conn., of the firm of Brown, Thompson & Co. She has one son and two daughters. (5) Mary Abbie, is the wife of Charles K. Chase, a merchant in Rochester, and has two daughters. (6) Sarah died single. (7) George, the only surviving son, is engaged in extensive grain, mill, and lumber business in Rochester; he married, first, Lizzie Hanson, who died leaving a son; afterwards he married, second, Nellie, daughter of Dr. James Farrington, of Rochester, her father being nephew of Dr. James Farrington, M. C. (8) Oliver, died in infancy.

Judged by the success of his work as the banker, as developing by a liberal and wise help every worthy manufacturing enterprise, and as foremost in the building of the various railways centering in Rochester, it is clear that Mr. McDuffee nobly comes into the list of those spoken of in our first paragraph, whose record is in the prosperity of his native town, where ability, sagacity, integrity, and kindliness have united to make that record, as well as his own personal success.

JOHN C. FRENCH.

Prior to 1870, New Hampshire had no reliable fire insurance company. That she now has one that is "sound, solid, and successful," firmly established in the confidence of the country, and steadily growing in strength and stability, is mainly due to JOHN C. FRENCH, who, in spite of much prejudice and distrust, laid the foundations of the New Hampshire Fire Insurance Company, and has since been its leading spirit and manager.

Mr. French came of sturdy stock. His grandfather, Abram French, was a native of Stratham, where he spent his boyhood and learned the trade of a carpenter and builder, in which he soon became known as a skillful and thorough workman. In this capacity he went to Pittsfield to complete the interior of the first meeting-house in that town; and, when this was finished, erected the buildings upon the parsonage lot for Rev. Christopher Paige, step-father of the "beautiful Grace Fletcher," the first wife of Daniel Webster. Some years later, Mr. Paige removed from town, and the young mechanic bought the place, and in 1796 married Hannah Lane, of Stratham, and established the French homestead, in which he reared to maturity twelve children, and dispensed for many years the hospitality which his prosperity enabled him to provide for a wide circle of relatives and friends. His numerous children and grandchildren ranked among the reliable and thrifty people of that town.

Enoch, the oldest son of Abram French, who married, in 1823, Eliza Cate, of Epsom,--a most estimable woman,--and settled on an adjoining farm, was the father of five children. The only survivor of this family is the subject of this sketch, John C. French, who was born March 1, 1832, and spent his boyhood upon one of the rocky farms in Pittsfield. His opportunities for obtaining an education were very limited, but his ardent desire to learn impelled him to supplement his common-school privileges by reading at home, and afterwards to obtain, by working on a farm summers and teaching winters, the money to pay his expenses for several terms at the academies at Pittsfield, Gilmanton, and Pembroke. What he learned at these institutions only fed his ambition to know more; and, as there was little opportunity for him to gratify his tastes and aspirations at home, when he became of age he made an arrangement with J. H. Colton & Co. to solicit orders for their mounted maps. The tact and activity which he showed in this work led his employers, a year later, to give him the Boston agency for "Colton's Atlas of the World," then in course of preparation; and in this he won another success, selling over twelve hundred copies of this large and expensive work. In 1855 he was appointed general agent for the house for New England, and subsequently gave considerable time to the introduction of Colton's series of geographies into the public schools; and was afterwards employed by Brown, Taggart, & Chase, and Charles Scribner & Co., in bringing out their school publications. While thus engaged he was able to gratify his fondness for travel, observation, and reading; gained an acquaintance with the leading authors, teachers, publishers, and other prominent educators, and a knowledge of the local history, industries, and resources of all the principal towns in New England. He also learned thoroughly the art of advertising, and of putting books upon the market in a way to command popular favor.

During the eight years he was thus employed, he made frequent journeys to Pittsfield, and spent a portion of each season there with his parents, to whom he was devotedly attached; but in May, 1866, having been appointed state agent of the Connecticut Mutual Life Insurance Company, he established his residence in Manchester, which has since been his home, though he still retains possession of the beautiful homestead farm upon which he was born.

Three years later, having become interested in and familiar with the insurance interests of the state, he conceived the idea of establishing a stock fire insurance company, and by untiring persistency and zeal overcame the almost universal prejudice against such an organization, enlisted in its support some of our most prominent citizens, secured a charter and the capital stock, and began the business which under his energetic and prudent directions has since grown to great proportions. To this company he still gives his undivided time and efforts, refusing to accept political office, declining all inducements to go elsewhere, resting entirely content with the success he commands in and from the company's office. His wide and varied experience has given him a great insight into business affairs and productive industries, and also an extensive and invaluable knowledge of men, and these acquirements and all his native abilities he is bringing to the service of the company in the enlarged and enlarging sphere of his official duties. That he does not labor in vain is shown by the fact that the New Hampshire company, so recently established, has increased its capital stock from one hundred thousand to five hundred thousand dollars, and its cash assets to nearly a million, that it commands the countenance and assistance of many of our most prominent men, and enjoys a national reputation for prudent management and financial success.

Mr. French has always taken a lively interest in his native town, and, when the project for building a railroad which would promote its growth and prosperity took shape, he gave himself heartily to the support of the enterprise, and it was largely through his efforts that the three hundred and fifty thousand dollars necessary to build the Suncook Valley road was secured, by subscriptions to the capital stock and gratuities from the towns along the line. As one method of helping this work to a successful completion, he established the _Suncook Valley Times_--a weekly paper--at Pittsfield and for two years contributed regularly to its columns a series of historical and biographical articles, which attracted much attention in the locality, and were widely copied and read elsewhere. He also at one time published and edited at Manchester a journal devoted to insurance interests; and in these publications, as well as in those of the New Hampshire company, has established a reputation as a vigorous, versatile, and popular writer.

The zeal, fidelity, and success with which he has managed the various interests intrusted to him have been highly appreciated, and numerous testimonials have borne witness to the satisfaction of his employers. The records of the New Hampshire company contain a resolution passed unanimously by the stockholders, in 1871, in which the unparalleled success of the company is ascribed mainly to his zeal and efficiency; and a similar resolution is inscribed upon the books of the Suncook Valley Railroad.

Mr. French, while not a politician, takes a deep interest in public affairs, and his help can always be depended on for whatever promises to promote the public good and the well-being of the community in which he lives. He is a genial companion, a stanch friend, and a man who wins and holds the good opinions of a very large circle of acquaintances. He is a member of Trinity Commandry, Knights Templar, and a director of the Merchants National Bank.

Mr. French married, in 1858, Annie M., daughter of L. B Philbrick, Esq., of Deerfield, and has three children,--Lizzie A., Susie P., and George Abram,--who reside with their parents.

HON. THOMAS COGSWELL.

The town of Gilmanton has always been distinguished for its strong and able men, who have exercised a powerful influence in the affairs of their town and state. It has furnished men to fill nearly every position of trust and honor within the gift of the people of our state, and it has ever been proud of her illustrious sons. Among the very strong men of this old town stood Hon. THOMAS COGSWELL, who in the year 1820, at the age of twenty-one, moved hither from Atkinson, N. H., where he was born December 7, 1798. He was one of a family of nine children of William and Judith (Badger) Cogswell, eight of whom lived to years of maturity. He settled on the farm formerly occupied by his grandfather, the Hon. Joseph Badger, and with strong hands and indomitable courage commenced gaining a livelihood for himself and young wife, Mary Noyes, whom he married just prior to moving here. He soon attracted the attention of the older settlers, and in a short time became one of the leading men in the town; and ever afterwards took an active part in all its local affairs, and for the whole period of his life was honored and respected by his neighbors and townsmen, and received at their hands every office within their gift.

There is no position that more truly shows the strength and power of a man than that of moderator of a New Hampshire town-meeting; but for many successive years he was chosen to preside over the deliberations of the annual and other meetings in this, then, large town, and always did so with great dignity, and to the perfect satisfaction of all. He was also chosen one of the board of selectmen, and represented the town in the legislature, and while a member of that body introduced and supported a bill to repeal the law authorizing imprisonment for debt. For ten years he was a deputy-sheriff for the county of Strafford, before its division, and during all this time was actively engaged in the duties of the office. He was also treasurer of the county for three years. In 1841 he was appointed one of the judges of the court of common pleas for the new county of Belknap, and held that position until the year 1855, when the judiciary system of the state was changed. In 1856 he was elected a member of the governor's council from district number three. He was a justice of the peace and quorum for over forty years. He was an officer in the New Hampshire militia, and attained the rank of captain. He was of Revolutionary stock, his father and seven uncles having served in that war, and performed, in the aggregate, thirty-eight years of service.

For seven years in succession he taught the winter term of school in his district, at the same time performing all the work incident to his farm, and during his whole life was interested in and a promoter of education. Gilmanton Academy, an institution established by the efforts of his grandfather, Gen. Joseph Badger, and his uncle, the Hon. Thomas Cogswell, with the assistance of many other strong and good men, early received his aid and co-operation, and he was one of its board of trustees up to within a few years of his death. In early life he became a member of the Congregational church at Gilmanton Iron-Works, and was deacon of the same for many years; and always gave freely of his means for the advancement of the cause of the Christian religion.

Notwithstanding the many and various duties imposed on Mr. Cogswell by his almost continuous service in some public position, he was a large and successful farmer, and by his own exertions added year by year to his original farm, so that at his death he owned in one tract nearly one thousand acres of valuable land. He was a great lover of the soil and was always interested in the cause of agriculture, and was in every respect a well informed and successful farmer.