This genealogy of the John Webster family comes from a four volume set of genealogy research compiled in the early 1900s. Each generation is shown in parentheses ( ). Begin with one individual and continue that line through the furthest generation currently known before starting a new descendancy for the next sibling. This method keeps each family group intact, while presenting the families of siblings separately but under the same generational number.
Not all the Websters in New England land are of one stock, though all are of good stock. The present line, which descends from John of Ipswich, has furnished many good men of local prominence in pioneer days and later times, several of them being college graduates. This line was united with the family of the ancestor of Hon. Daniel, in the seventh generation, by the marriage of Eliphalet K. Webster, of the line of John and Emily Webster of the progeny of Thomas.
(I) John Webster came from Ipswich, Suffolk county, England, to Ipswich, Massachusetts, where he was made a freeman in 1635. He died about the year 1646, and his family afterward removed to Newbury. His wife was Mary Shatswell. They had four sons and four daughters, as follows: Mary, John, born 1633; Hannah, Abigail, Stephen, Elizabeth, Israel and Nathan. On October 29, 1650, John Webster’s widow married John Emery, of Newbury, and she died April 28, 1694. (Mention of Stephen and Nathan and descendants forms part of this article).
(II) Stephen Webster, second son and fifth child of John and Mary (Shatswell) Webster, was born about 1637-39, in Ipswich, and was a tailor, residing in Haverhill, Massachusetts, where he took the freeman’s oath, in 1668, and died August 10, 1694. He first settled in Newbury and moved thence to Haverhill in 1653. He was married, March 24, 1663, in Haverhill, to Hannah Ayer, who died June 2, 1676. He married (second), May 26, 1678, Widow Judith Broad. His children, all born of the first wife, were: Hannah, John, Mary, Stephen, Nathan and Abigail. (Mention of Stephen and descendants appears in this article).
(III) John Webster (2), eldest son and second child of Stephen and Hannah (Ayer) Webster, was born March 15, 1668, in Haverhill, and died in 1742. He was married, June 14, 1693, to Triphena Locke, and the Haverhill records give him ten children.
(IV) Stephen Webster (2), son of John (2) and Triphena (Locke) Webster, was born June 1, 1698, and was married February 21, 1722, to Abigail Berry.
(V) Stephen Webster (3), son of Stephen (2) and Abigail (Berry) Webster, was born March 3, 1731, was married February 28, 1754, to Susanna Ladd, and died March 2, 1803.
(VI) Stephen Webster (4), son of Stephen (3) and Susanna (Ladd) Webster, was born March 15, 1758, and was married April 15, 1779, to Chloe Wheeler, who was born November 28, 1760.
(VII) Atkinson Webster, son of Stephen (4) and Chloe (Wheeler) Webster, receives mention elsewhere (See Wyman, VIII).
(III) Stephen Webster (2), fourth child and second son of Stephen (1) and Hannah (Ayer) Webster, was born in Haverhill, January 1, 1672, and died March 9, 1748, aged seventy-six. He was one of eight men in the garrison of John Webster, March, 1690. He married Widow Mary Cook, and they had six children: Samuel, John, Stephen, William, Ebenezer and Mary.
(IV) Ebenezer Webster, fifth son and child of Stephen (2) and Mary (Cook) Webster, was born September 20, 1711. He married Mehitable Kimball, of Bradford, Massachusetts, and they were the parents of Lydia, Isaac, Mary, Ebenezer, Jonathan, Stephen, Moses and John. (Mention of Ebenezer and descendants forms part of this article.)
(V) Isaac Webster, eldest son of Ebenezer (1) and Mehitable (Kimball) Webster, was born in 1740. He also served in the revolutionary war. He married Lydia Woodbury and had children: Phineas, see forward; Jonathan and Kimball.
(VI) Captain Phineas Webster, son of Isaac and Lydia (Woodbury) Webster, was born March 4, 1775, and died September 11, 1858. He was captain of a company during the war of 1812. He married, 1797, Hannah Hazelton, who died October 4, 1860. Their children were: Jesse, see forward; James, Alfred, Moses, Lydia, Caroline and Isaac.
(VII) Jesse Webster, eldest child of Captain Phineas and Hannah (Hazelton) Webster, was born in Atkinson, New Hampshire, February 14, 1798, and died May 18, 1845. He was a carriage builder for many years at Derry, and for twelve years prior to his death was engaged in farming. He was educated in the district school and at Major Dudley’s military school at Windham. He became a private in the Sixth Company, Eighth Regiment, New Hampshire Militia, commanded by Colonel Samuel Richardson, and was appointed sergeant August 1, 1817; was advanced to a lieutenancy April 25, 1820; to a captaincy June 2, 1820, by Governor Samuel Bell. He served until November 18, 1824, and then resigned. He was a member of the Presbyterian Church, and for a number of years served as an elder. He married, November 28, 1823, Betsy Wilson, born in Pelham, December 16, 1798, died February 4, 1874. She was a daughter of Benjamin Wilson, a lineal descendant of John Wilson, the first minister of Boston, Massachusetts. The children of this marriage were: 1. George Alfred, died young. 2. Ann Elizabeth, also died young. 3. Caroline Elizabeth, see forward. 4. Lydia Ann, born August 19, 1831, died February 9, 1862, was a successful school teacher. 5. Otis B., born January 3, 1834, died in Chester, New Hampshire, January 26, 1862. He was graduated from Princeton College in 1859, entered the Princeton Theological Seminary in 1861, and died the following year.
(VIII) Caroline Elizabeth Webster, third child and second daughter of Captain Jesse and Betsy (Wilson) Webster, was born in Derry, May 19, 1829. She was educated in the public schools and in Adams Female Academy, from which latter institution she was graduated September 24, 1844. She was engaged in teaching during the following six years, and taught in District No. 9, where her mother had taught, and where her daughter Annie subsequently taught. She married, May 19, 1853, Nathan Spalding Morse, born in Orange, March 30, 1830, died in Chester, October 23, 1902. He was educated in the schools of Chester and at the Pembroke Academy. He was an auctioneer and a dealer in real estate and resided in Chester. In politics he was a Democrat, and for twenty years was moderator of the annual town meetings. Mr. and Mrs. Morse had five children: 1. Roger Spalding, born May 23, 1855, died at Fitchburg, Massachusetts, March 17, 1876. 2. Lawrence L., born July 10, 1856, died March 28, 1906. 3. Carrie. 4. Morris W., born November 12, 1864. He was graduated from Dartmouth College in 1887, and from the Hartford Theological School in 1890. At Hartford he won the Welt fellowship, which enabled him to attend theological lectures at the University of Leipsic, Germany, for two years, following his graduation. Returning to America, he preached at Hollister, California, two years; Crete, Nebraska, five years; Ferndale, Washington, five years; then at Wilbur; and later at Ilwaco, Washington. He married in Orange, California, July 15, 1890, Laura M. Blasdale, daughter of Dr. Charles and Julia Dickinson Smith. They have children: Annie Mabel, Marion and Walter. 5. Annie L., born August 12, 1866, was educated in the public schools and Mount Holyoke Female Seminary, where she attended 1883-85. She taught school for two years in and in the vicinity of Derry. She married, May 7, 1894, in Haverhill, Massachusetts, Charles Adams Sprague, of that city, and since 1898 they have resided in Derry. They have children: Daniel L., and Roger Edmund.
(V) Ebenezer Webster (2), fourth child and second son of Ebenezer (1) and Mehitable (Kimball) Webster, was born in Haverhill, Massachusetts, February 1, 1744, and died in Pelham, New Hampshire, March 13, 1823, aged seventy-nine years. He was, like his ancestors, a farmer, and settled first in Londonderry, New Hampshire, where he passed most of his life, an industrious and respected citizen. He was married three times, (first) November 29, 1770, to Rebecca Baldwin, whose children were: Sarah, Ebenezer and Rebecca; (second) December 31, 1775, to Martha Barker; (third) to Elizabeth Bradford, of Beverly, Massachusetts, born September 6, 1755, who died in Amherst, New Hampshire, March 27, 1841. They were married in Salem, October 13, 1778, by Rev. Abner Bayley, and had children born to them as follows: Roxana, Betsey, Asa, John, Nancy, Sully, Rebecca, Mary, Catherine, William G., Heriot (or Harriet) and Benjamin. (Mention of William G. and descendants forms part of this article).
(VI) John Webster (2), son of Ebenezer (2) and Elizabeth (Bradford) Webster, was born in Pelham, December 25, 1791, and died March 1, 1883, aged ninety-one years and two months. He lived on the paternal homestead in Pelham, excepting one year in Meredith, and one in Hudson (formerly Nottingham West), until 1841, when he sold his farm in Pelham and bought one in Amherst, where he resided until 1846, when he returned to Hudson, and buying a farm on Bush Hill, lived there twenty years; then resided with his daughters, Sally Titcomb and Lovisa Baker, until his death, which occurred at the residence of the latter in the town of Hudson. He was drafted in the war of 1812, and served in Captain Haynes’ company of New Hampshire militia at Portsmouth. From February 14, 1871, until his death he received from the United States a pension for his services. Mr. Webster was an energetic and industrious man, a quiet citizen who abided by the law, did his duty in every position, and for many years was universally called “Honest John Webster.” He married, August 22, 1815, Hannah Cummings, of Nottingham West, who was born in Nottingham, August 4, 1794, and died in Hudson, February 3, 1871. She was the daughter of Eleazer and Sarah (Hale) Cummings and great-granddaughter of Deacon Henry and Mary Hale. Mr. Cummings was a farmer and taught school and singing school. His wife was born April 20, 1767, and died May 7, 1852, aged eighty-five years. She was a woman remarkable for physical strength and endurance. While her husband was absent engaged in teaching, she performed her household duties and also took charge of a herd of cattle. She was a member of the Congregational Church, and made her Christianity a part of her daily life. Mrs. Hannah (Cummings) Webster first became a member of the Congregational Church in Pelham, and during her residence at other places was a member of the other churches of the same denomination, in all of which she was a highly esteemed sister. The thirteen children of John and Hannah (Cummings) Webster were: Elizabeth B., Moses, Sally Hale, Eleazer C., Lovisa N., Lucy Ann, Kimball, Hannah J., John C., Nathan P., Willard H., Milton E. and Orrin P.
(VII) Kimball Webster, seventh child and third son of John and Hannah (Cummings) Webster, was born in Pelham, November 2, 1828, and educated in the common schools of Pelham and Hudson. He grew up a farmer boy inured by hard work and prepared for the toil and labor that has since befallen him. In April, 1849, six months before attaining his majority, he heard of the great gold discovery at Sutter’s Fort, now Sacramento, California, and at once set out for the Pacific slope. He left home April 17, 1849, and went to Independence, Missouri, where he outfitted, and with a company of about twenty-eight persons went by horses and pack mules over the trail to California, arriving at Sacramento Valley, California, in the month of October, after spending six months on the trail and experiencing what it is impossible for any traveler to experience today anywhere in the Union, or hardly in North America. He engaged in mining on the Feather and Yuba rivers, and in June, 1851, went to Oregon City, and was deputy surveyor on government surveys in the Willamette and Umpqua valleys. After passing two years in California and nearly four in Oregon, he returned to the states in the fall of 1854 by the Isthmus of Panama, arriving at home in the fall of 1854. In 1855 he was employed as a surveyor on the line of the Hannibal & St. Joseph railroad in Missouri. In 1855 he returned to New Hampshire, and in 1858 resided in Vinal Haven, Maine. Since that time he has been a resident of Hudson, New Hampshire, where he owns and occupies a portion of the land which his great-grandfather, Eleazer Cummings, bought in 1728. He is a surveyor of long experience and has a wide reputation, being one of the most accurate and reliable in the county. In politics he is a Democrat, and has been a leader of the minority party in his town and county for many years, and when a candidate for office has usually polled more than the party vote. In 1901-02 he was a member of the legislature and served on the committee on appropriations, and during the famous Northfield-Tilton case he was a member of the committee having it in charge; the case was an important one, and was long and stubbornly fought. He was a selectman four years, and three years of that time was chairman of the board. In 1859 he was made justice of the peace, and has held that office ever since. His interest in the past in promoting the use of the best methods of agriculture, and a desire to see the farmer obtain the greatest possible reward for his toil made him from the time of its establishment an industrious worker for the promotion of the effectiveness of the Grange movement. He was the first petitioner for the establishment of a grange in Hudson, and upon the establishment of Hudson Grange, No. 11, of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry, December 8, 1873, he was chosen its presiding officer, and filled that place three years. He was one of the few who organized the New Hampshire State Grange, December 23, 1873, and also Hillsborough County Council, March 4, 1874, of which he was master two years, and secretary from December, 1876, until the organization, April 17, 1883, of its successor, Hillsborough County Pomona Grange, when he was made secretary of that body and continued to hold that office until about 1888. His intelligence and activity have made him a useful and valued member of this order. Mr. Webster is a member of Rising Sun Lodge, No. 39, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, of Nashua, which he joined in 1869.
His interest in historical matters and ancient landmarks is lifelong, and has grown stronger with the lapse of years. He has done much to preserve the latter by carefully drawn and creditable copies of many of the much worn and injured plats of lands, ancient grants, etc., in Old Dunstable. At the present time (1907) he is at work on a history of Nottingham and Nottingham West, now Hudson. He has been president of the Cummings family reunion for the past twenty-six years, and which are held on the Merrimack River banks, opposite his home. Mr. Webster has marked the spots where the Blodgett and Hill’s garrisons were located, with large bowlders, which bear the following inscriptions: “Hill’s, the first settlement of Hudson, was about 1770. Nathaniel Hills, April 12, 1748, aged sixty-five years. Henry Hills, died August 20, 1757, aged sixty-nine; erected in 1901.”
“Blodgett. Joseph and Dorothy Blodgett; their eldest son, Joseph, born here February 9, 1718, being the first white child born in the town; erected 1904.”
He is a quiet, mild-mannered man, remarkable for his energy and executive ability. These qualities have attracted to him many friends who have known him from his youth and now honor him in his age. He has always been regarded as a safe and honest man whose wisdom and judgment were reliable, and a worthy type of the intelligent New England farmer.
He married, January 29, 1857, in Hudson, Abiah Cutter, who was born in Pelham, February 1, 1837, daughter of Seth and Deborah (Gage) Cutter, of Pelham. Ten children have been born to them as follows: Lizzie Jane, January 11, 1858; Ella Frances, August 19, 1859; Kimball C. and James (twins), June 26, 1861; Kimball C. died August 22, 1861, and James on day of birth; Eliza Ball, July 14, 1862; Latina Ray, July 26, 1865, died November 12, 1887; Julia Anna, October 26, 1867; Mary Newton, August 9, 1869; twins, male and female, who died at birth.
(VI) William G. Webster, ninth child and second son of Ebenezer and Elizabeth (Bradford) Webster, was born in Londonderry, August 20, 1803. He was a tinner and resided in Dover, New Hampshire. William G. Webster and Hannah J. Foss, both of Dover, were married by Rev. Benjamin P. Hoyt, of Dover, May 15, 1828. Their children were: George, Elizabeth, who married and died in East Boston, Harriet, who married Cyrus Littlefield of Dover, Helen, deceased, Olive, deceased, Charles E., who served in the Civil war four years, resided at Boston, and is now deceased, Benjamin K., whose sketch follows.
(VII) Benjamin Kimball Webster, third son of William G. and Hannah J. (Foss) Webster, was born in Dover, April 21, 1839, and educated in the public schools. He learned his father’s trade and was associated in business for a time with his uncle, Daniel K. Webster, in Dover. In 1868, he took charge of the Varney tannery of Dover. He enlisted at Dover as a private August 18, 1862, and was mustered into the United States service as a private in Company K, Eleventh New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry, September 21, 1862, and was later appointed corporal and subsequently sergeant. He was mustered out June 4, 1865, after having campaigned in Maryland, Virginia, Kentucky, Mississippi and Tennessee, and participated in the battles of Fredericksburg, Vicksburg, the Wilderness and Cold Harbor. He participated in seventeen important battles of the war. After his return to New Hampshire he worked at his trade for a time and then engaged in farming on North Main street, Wolfborough, which he carried on until 1906, when he sold his one-half interest in the farm to his son-in-law, John Frank Goodwin, a prominent contractor and builder. Mr. Webster’s place commands a fine view of Lake Winnipesaukee and the mountains and has been a favorite with many who have spent summer vacations there. He ran a boarding house several years, accommodating thirty or forty guests from the city of New York, Boston and other cities. Mr. Webster is a member of James R. Newell Post, No. 61, Grand Army of the Republic, of Wolfborough, of which he was a charter member. He married (first), at Wolfboro, in 1870, Emma C. Libby, who was born in 1840, daughter of Dudley and Sarah A. Libby, of Wolfboro. She died October 7, 1875. He married (second) Eliza C. Wiggin, who was born July 15, 1849, daughter of James M. and Caroline (Wiggin) Wiggin (See Wiggin II.), of Tuftonborough [1]now Tuftonboro. They have one daughter, Helen C., who was born in Wolfborough, January, 1881. She graduated in 1889, from Brewster Free Academy, and June, 1906, married J. Frank Goodwin. They reside on the old homestead.
(II) Nathan Webster, youngest child of John and Mary (Shatswell) Webster, was born in Ipswich, Massachusetts, in 1646. He settled in Bradford, where he died in May, 1694. He was married June 30, 1673, to Mary Hazeltine, born December 9, 1648, daughter of John Hazeltine, of Haverhill. She was admitted to Bradford Church from Haverhill in 1682. Their children were: John, Mary, Nathan, Joanna, Abigail, Israel, and Samuel. Joanna married Richard Bailey (See Bailey, III).
(III) Nathan Webster (2), eldest of the three children of Nathan (1) and Mary (Hazeltine) Webster, was born March 7, 1679, and was one of the proprietors of Chester, New Hampshire. He removed to that place about 1729 and owned two home lots, Nos. 71 and 72, and resided on 72. That Nathan Webster was a man of ability and standing, and an active, efficient and highly respected member of the church is evident from the fact that the record shows him to have been chosen selectman in 1729-38-42-50-51-57-61-63-66-70-71. At a town meeting in August, 1739, “Voted that Capt. Sam Ingalls, mr Nathan Webster, and mr John Taltord Shall be a Committee to take bonds of the Inhabitants of Rumford (now Concord) for the making and maintaining a good sufficient Roads for Passing Massibeecik Pond towards their town, agreeable to their proposals made to us, and to Enter into bonds to them to make and maintain one on this side, and over the said pond, as good.”
At the town meeting held January 13, 1730, he was appointed on a committee “to treat with the Rev. Mr. Moses Hale, and to acquaint him with what ye town hath done, and to invite him into the work of ye Ministry among us in Chester.” He was subsequently twice appointed on committees for similar purposes, and was a member of the committee appointed to build the meeting-house.
By his first wife, Martha, Nathan Webster had the following named children: Daniel, Nathan, Stephen (founder of the Webster family of Plymouth, New Hampshire, mentioned at length hereinafter), Abel and Mary. He was married (second) August 3, 1738, to Mary (Stevens) Godfrey, whose first husband was Thomas Sargent, and her second Peter Godfrey. She was a daughter of Deacon Thomas and Martha (Bartlett) Stevens, of Amesbury, and survived her third husband several years, dying May 24, 1766. (Stephen and descendants receive mention in this article.)
(IV) Nathan Webster (3), second child and son of Nathan (2) and Mary Webster, was born in Chester, July 1, 1715, died 1794. He was a farmer and lived on house lot No. 117. In the year 1764 he was one of the three chosen by the town as a committee to settle about highways in Raymond and make return. He signed the association test in 1776. Chase’s “History of Chester” states that, “At the September term of the Superior Court, 1771, Andrew Jack, Nathan Webster and John Robie, the selectmen of Chester, were indicted because Chester, having more than 100 families, had no grammar school. At the March term, 1772, Jack and Webster were tried and fined £10, and cost taxed at £7, 12s. 4d.”
This does not imply that Nathan Webster, the ancestor of many college graduates, living in a community now so intelligent, was opposed to the outlay of money for the support of schools. On the contrary, the financial conditions were such that the men of that community did not feel able to bear the burden of schools, and had voted to secure the selectmen from fine for failing to act. He married, February 10, 1742, Martha Blasdell, and they had eleven children, all but two of whom died young. Those who grew up and had families were: Nathan and Moses.
(V) Nathan Webster (4), third child of Nathan (3) and Martha (Blasdell) Webster, was born in Chester, November 19, 1747, and resided on the old homestead. He married, May 8, 1771, Elizabeth, daughter of Isaac and Sarah (Healy) Clifford, of Candia, and granddaughter of William Healy. Isaac Clifford was the son of Samuel Clifford, of Kingston, and Martha Healy, his wife, was the daughter of William and Mary (Sanborn) Healy, formerly of Hampton Falls. The ten children of Nathan and Elizabeth Webster were: Josiah, Sarah, Mary, John Ordway, Nathan, Elizabeth, Martha, Huldy, Susanna and Hannah. (Mention of Nathan (5) and descendants appears later.)
(VI) Rev. Josiah Webster, eldest child of Nathan (4) and Elizabeth (Clifford) Webster, was born in Chester, January 16, 1772, and died March 27, 1837. He graduated from Dartmouth College in 1798, studied theology with Rev. Stephen Peabody, of Atkinson, was ordained pastor of the South Congregational Church of Ipswich (Chebacco), 1799; dismissed, 1806; installed June 8, 1808, at Hampton, where he remained till his death. He married, December 2, 1799, Elizabeth Knight, born June 11, 1771, daughter of Eliphalet and Martha (Webster) Knight, of Atkinson. She died April 9, 1849. Their children were: Eliphalet Knight, Josiah, Elizabeth Clifford (died young), John Calvin, Joseph Dana, Elizabeth Knight and Claudius Buchanan. John Calvin graduated at Dartmouth in 1832; Joseph Dana, 1832, and Claudius Buchanan, 1836.
(VII) Eliphalet Knight Webster, M.D., eldest child of Rev. Josiah and Elizabeth (Knight) Webster, was born in Essex, Massachusetts, May 3, 1802, and died in Pittsfield, New Hampshire, November 9, 1881. He received his medical education at Dartmouth College, practiced medicine in Litchfield, New Hampshire, for a short time; in Hill from 1833 to 1844, and from 1844 to 1870 in Boscawen. Dr. Webster was a prominent man in his profession, and was once president of the New Hampshire Medical Society. He was active in politics and held the office of postmaster in Boscawen. In religion he was a Congregationalist, and a loyal supporter of the church. He was married August, 1833, to Emily Webster, daughter of Colonel Ebenezer Webster, of Hill, New Hampshire, and his wife, Sarah, youngest sister of Hon. Daniel Webster. (See Webster, first family, V.) Emily Webster was born February 12, 1809, and died October 19, 1882, at Pittsfield. They had four children: Daniel Dana, Sarah Elizabeth, Emily Maria and Edward Knight.
(VIII) Edward Knight Webster, youngest child of Dr. Eliphalet K. and Emily (Webster) Webster, was born in Boscawen, August 5, 1848. He was educated in the public schools of Boscawen and at Pembroke Academy, and Putnam School, Newburyport, Massachusetts, and was a bookkeeper for a commercial house for a time. In 1872 he engaged in the drug business at Pittsfield, which he carried on successfully for twenty years. He is a member of the Episcopal Church, and in politics is a Democrat. He has held several town offices, was trustee of Pittsfield Public Library six years, member of the constitutional convention, 1900, and was deputy sheriff for Merrimack county for eight years. He was made a Knight of Pythias October 15, 1874, becoming a charter member of Norris Lodge, No. 16, of Pittsfield, was elected keeper of the records and seal at its institution, and afterward filled the several chairs, and became past chancellor October 24, 1883. He took the Grand Lodge Rank, February 7, 1884, and was elected grand outer guard at that time. He was made grand master-at-arms, 1885; grand vice-chancellor, 1886; grand chancellor, 1887; elected supreme representative, June 12, 1889; and became a member of the Supreme Lodge, August, 1890, at Milwaukee, Wisconsin. October 2, 1901, was elected grand keeper of records and seal at the convention of the Grand Lodge of New Hampshire, held at Franklin, and has been re-elected at each annual convention since that time. He was commissioned assistant commissary general, with the rank of colonel, on the staff of Brigadier-General C. P. Hoyt, commanding the New Hampshire brigade, uniform rank, Knights of Pythias, and held that position until 1905, and was then commissioned colonel and assistant adjutant-general on the staff of Brigadier-General Orman T. Lougee. A company of the uniform rank, Knights of Pythias, was formed in Pittsfield in 1896, and named Edward K. Webster Company, No. 16, in his honor. In November, 1905, Mr. Webster took up his residence at Concord, where the office of the grand keeper of records and seal is maintained.
(IV) Stephen Webster, third son and child of Nathan (2) and Martha Webster, was born February 18, 1718, in Chester, resided for a time in Candia, and later in Hollis, where he was selectman in 1762-63-65. By purchase of the right of one of the grantees of Plymouth, this state, he became a proprietor of that town, where he settled about 1765. He was an intelligent and useful citizen, and acted as teacher in the early schools of the frontier settlement. He died in 1798. He married Rachel Stevens, of Amesbury, Massachusetts, probably a daughter of Samuel and Rachel (Heath) Stevens, of Amesbury. She was admitted to the church there January 14, 1728, was dismissed to the church in Chester, May 10, 1739, and died January 3, 1754. Mr. Webster married (second) Sarah, widow of Daniel Clough, of Kingston, and daughter of William and Elizabeth (Heard) Baker, of Salisbury. The first wife was the mother of five children, and the second of two, namely: David, Stephen, Lydia, Sarah, Amos, Daniel Clough and Rachel. (Mention of Stephen and descendants follows in this article).
(V) David Webster, eldest child of Stephen Webster and his first wife, Rachel Stevens, was born December 12, 1738. He was a colonel and rendered conspicuous service in the Revolution. After his marriage he lived for one year in Hollis, New Hampshire, but moved to Plymouth in November, 1764, where he became prominent in town affairs, and served as sheriff of Grafton county for many years. He was twice married, but his children were all by his first wife. On April 20, 1761, Colonel David Webster married his step-mother’s daughter, Elizabeth Clough, daughter of Daniel and Sarah (Baker) Clough, who was born in Kingston, New Hampshire, September 23, 1745. They had twelve children: Sarah, David, mentioned below; Eliphalet, William, Josiah, a son who died at birth, Elizabeth, mentioned below; George Washington, Ralph, Sarah, a daughter who died at birth, and Walter Raleigh. Mrs. Webster died May 22, 1809, and on September 3 of that year Colonel Webster married Susanna Chase, who was born in 1749, and died April 6, 1821. Colonel David Webster died May 8, 1824.
(VI) David Webster (2), eldest son and second child of Colonel David and Elizabeth (Clough) Webster, was born at Hollis, New Hampshire, November 30, 1763. The next year his parents moved to Plymouth, where he lived till he was twenty-five years of age. From 1789 to 1799 his home was at Moultonboro, New Hampshire, and for the succeeding seventeen years at Haverhill, New Hampshire; but in 1816 he returned to Plymouth where he lived till his death nearly thirty years later. He was an active man of ability and influence, and for several years was deputy sheriff. He owned two or three farms in Plymouth, and was largely engaged in the cultivation of hops. He belonged to the state militia for some time, and was made captain on July 5, 1794. On November 18, 1785, David (2) Webster married his cousin, Lydia Cummings, daughter of Samuel and Lydia (Webster) Cummings, and granddaughter of Stephen Webster (IV). She was born August 31, 1769. They had thirteen children: David, Samuel Cummings, mentioned below; Eliza Clough, Lydia, Harriet, Susan Smith, Ralph, Arthur Livermore, Mary Lawrence, Ann Maria, Jane Livermore, a daughter who lived but a few weeks, and Elizabeth Clough. Captain David (2) Webster died at Plymouth, June 4, 1844, and his widow died September 2, 1865, aged ninety-six.
(VI) Elizabeth Webster, second daughter and seventh child of Colonel David (1) Webster and his first wife, Elizabeth Clough, was born at Plymouth, New Hampshire, July 8, 1773. On December 23, 1790, she married Moor Russell, of Plymouth (See Russell, V).
(VII) Samuel Cummings Webster, second son and child of Captain (2) and Lydia (Cummings) Webster, was born June 28, 1788. He was graduated from Dartmouth College in 1808, and was a lawyer at Plymouth, New Hampshire. He was a representative to the state legislature in 1822-26-27-30-32, being speaker of the house in 1830. He was a member of the governor’s council in 1831. In 1833 he was appointed sheriff of Grafton county, and removed to Haverhill, New Hampshire, where he spent the last two years of his life. On May 5, 1816, Samuel Cummings Webster married his cousin, Catherine, second daughter and third child of Moor and Elizabeth (Webster) Russell, who was born at Haverhill, New Hampshire, May 28, 1797 (See Russell, V). They had ten children: Samuel Cummings, Dominicus, David Henry, Ann Eliza Cushing, Jeremiah Mason, Rufus Boliver, Catherine Cabot, Edward Cushing, Charles Carroll and Catherine Russell. Samuel C. Webster died at Haverhill, New Hampshire, July 21, 1835, at the early age of forty-seven. In 1844 his widow married Joseph Edmonds, of Brooklyn, New York, who lived five years. She died in Plymouth, New Hampshire, September 24, 1880, at the age of eighty-three.
(V) Stephen (2), second son and child of Stephen (1) and Rachel (Stevens) Webster, was born probably in Candia, New Hampshire, July 7, 1741. He moved from Candia to Plymouth, this state, where he was a pioneer settler in 1764, and a man of character and influence. On October 21, 1762, Stephen Webster married Hannah Dolbeer, of Chester, New Hampshire, and they had eleven children: Sarah, married Samuel Heath; Lydia, married Nehemiah Phillips; Hannah, married Joshua Heath; Polly, married Christopher Sargent; Peter; Moses; Lucy, married Solomon Sanborn; Stephen, married Polly Fuller; Amos; David, mentioned below; and Betsey, born April 30, 1782, married Joseph Fletcher, of Rumney (See Fletcher, VII). She died March 10, 1863, in Rumney. Of these children the eldest was born in Candia, and the other ten in Plymouth; and it is interesting to know that Lydia, the second child, born June 2, 1765, was the first infant of white parentage to see the light in the new settlement (Plymouth). Stephen (2) Webster died in 1788, at the early age of forty-seven.
(VI) David Webster (2), fifth son and tenth child of Stephen (2) and Hannah (Dolbeer) Webster, was born July 6, 1779, at Plymouth, New Hampshire. He moved to the neighboring town of Rumney, where he reared a large family. He was converted to the Christian religion under the preaching of Rev. Lorenzo Dow, and joined the Baptist Church. The marriage intentions of David (2) Webster to Lucy Hutchins were published on January 21, 1806, and they were married five days later. She was a woman of strong religious convictions, gave freely to missions, and kept Fast Day in the early Puritan fashion. She early espoused the cause of the slave, and left a legacy to the Freedman’s Bureau. David (2) and Lucy (Hutchins) Webster had nine children: George Webster, George Hutchins, Selomy, Dardana S., Emeline Mary and Adeline Martha (twins), David Peabody, Elizabeth Hutchins, and Nancy Hutchins. Three of these children, George W. and George H., the two eldest, and Dardana S., died in infancy, while Adeline Martha, one of the twins, died October 27, 1821, during her seventeenth year; but of the five who lived to grow up, three attained to extraordinary longevity, and two are now living at present (1907). Selomy, born April 23, 1809, married David W. Doe, and died November 1, 1907, in her ninety-ninth year. Emeline Mary, born May 1, 1818, married Ichabod Packard Hardy, and is now in her ninety-third year. (See Hardy, III). Elizabeth Hutchins, born April 8, 1820, married David Hadley, of Manchester, and is now in her eighty-eighth year. It is doubtful if there is another trio of sisters in the state who can show such length of years. The youngest sister, Nancy Hutchins, born April 22, 1824, married John W. Peppard, of Rumney, and died in February, 1888, in her sixty-fourth year. David (2) Webster, the father, died at Rumney, New Hampshire, May 12, 1841, in his sixty-second year.
(VI) Nathan Webster (5), fifth child of Nathan (4) and Elizabeth (Clifford) Webster, was born April 9, 1780, and married Mary Simonds, daughter of Widow Simonds, who married Captain Pearson Richardson, of Chester. Captain Richardson had no children, and Mr. Webster became his protégé and lived on his farm, where he died March 30, 1815. His widow subsequently married John L. Glidden, and died December 19, 1863.
(VII) Nathaniel Webster (6) came from Londonderry to the eastern part of Manchester, settling near Lake Massabesic. Later he moved to the western part of the town, near Goff’s Falls, where he died in 1862-63, at the age of fifty-five years. His death was the result of exposure and hardship in the line of military duty, as a member of the Ninth New Hampshire Regiment in the Civil war. His wife, Martha Maria Corning, supposed to have been a native of Manchester, survived him many years, passing away in the spring of 1884. Their home was on the farm now occupied by their son’s widow, near Goff’s Falls. They were the parents of seven children, noted as follows: Eveline, the eldest, died before twenty years old. Caius C. is mentioned at length in the succeeding paragraph. Jane became the wife of George Durgin, and died in West Manchester, in 1895. Ellen resides in Manchester. Abigail died in 1867, unmarried. Josephine resides in Manchester. Plumer C., the youngest, is a citizen of Henniker, this state.
(VIII) Caius Cassius Webster, second child and elder son of Nathaniel and Martha Maria (Corning) Webster, was born October 10, 1839, and died October 10, 1897, on the farm in Manchester, near Goff’s Falls. His education was supplied by the common schools of the neighborhood, and most of his life was devoted to agriculture. Soon after attaining his majority he went to the defense of his country’s honor, as a soldier in the Civil war. He enlisted August 13, 1862, in Company A, Tenth New Hampshire Infantry, and served in the Army of the Potomac. His first severe battle was that of Fredericksburg, and he was soon after detailed as a teamster in the army train. He was present at the fall of Richmond, and was discharged in June, 1865. On his return to his home, he spent three years in a flouring mill at Lawrence, after which he devoted his summers to agriculture, and was occupied in winter in getting out timbers for building purposes. Mr. Webster was a very temperate man, and knew not the taste of liquors. He was a regular attendant of the Methodist Church, and was a member of the Grand Army of the Republic and the Improved Order of Red Men. He was a firm believer in the principles enunciated by the Republican party, though not a seeker of official honors. In 1894 he represented the town of Manchester in the state legislature with credit to himself and his constituency. He was married, August 10, 1862, to Caroline Calef, daughter of John Calef (See Calef, IV). She was born May 17, 1838, and was twelve years old when she went with her parents to the farm on which she has since lived. She is a member of the Methodist Church. Her son, Frederick Elmer Webster, died at the age of twenty-six years. A daughter, Edith Aroline, resides with the mother.
Source
Stearns, Ezra S., Genealogical and family history of the state of New Hampshire : a record of the achievements of her people in the making of a commonwealth and the founding of a nation, New York : Lewis Publishing Co., 1908.
References
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