Biographies From Swan Island
Joshua
Grindle
Joshua Grindle came here from Sedgwick
in 1794. We find he sold the same year the lot he had formerly
lived on "to James Douglass a lot of land at Buck's Harbor,
township number 4, county of Lincoln, Massachusetts Bay, New
England, for the sum of £12, s10, Halifax currency". (3105) He
took up a tract of land here extending from Moses Staples' to
the carrying place, which contained one hundred acres. It is the
lot occupied by Horace E. Stanley, Daniel McKay and others. The
hill above the carrying place is still called "Grindle hill".
Joseph Prince gave a bond for a deed to Mr. Grindle on May I,
1794, to be given when he had lived on the place for seven
years.
The island having been sold to Swan
again, he gave to Prince the power of attorney, Feb. 28, 1798,
to give Grindle a deed, and although Grindle lived on this lot
until 1800, no deed to him was ever recorded. In the year 1800
he returned to township No. 4 (Brooksville), where he bought two
lots of land of Abner Dodge, where he lived on his farm the
remainder of his life. He died about the year 1849, aged near
seventy-five years. Mr. Grindle's wife was Ruth Stanley, of
Sedgwick, whom he married before coming here, and by whom he had
ten children. When he left this island his place was taken by
John Van Namberg, a Dutchman, whose wife's name was Sarah. They
had no children. After a short residence here, he left and went
to Brooksville. Samuel Kempton afterwards took this same place.
His wife was Lydia Dunham. They had one daughter, Hannah, who
moved to Hampden. The property fell into the hands of Edward
Gott, whose heirs still own it. Whether Mr. Grindle ever secured
any title to this land or not we never learned, nor is there any
record of his deeding it to the subsequent occupants.
Mr, Grindle's family consisted of four
daughters and six sons. The daughters were: Anna, who became the
wife of Richard Grindle and settled in Brooksville; Joanna, who
was the wife of Israel Johnson, and resided in Bluehill; Mary,
who married William Wescott, and lived at North Bluehill; Eliza,
who died young.
The sons were: Eben, who was born here
in 1800; his wife was Mary Grindle; he was the father of Mrs. E.
J. Orcutt, whose husband was formerly light-keeper at Hocomock
Head; Stephen, whose wife was Hulda Snow; their home was in
Brooksville; Lowell, who married Mary Stephenson and lived in
Surry for many years, finally returning to Brooksville where
they died; Joshua, who married Mercy Farnham and settled in
Surry; John, who married Eliza Smith and settled in Surry;
Daniel, who married Ruth Rogers and settled in Salem, Mass.
All the children of Mr. Grindle, sr.,
survived him except Eliza. They are now all dead except Joshua.
Alexander
Nutter
Alexander Nutter was the first settler
on Irish point. He came here about 1796 from Gloucester, Mass.
He first came to the island in a coasting vessel. This was after
the mills were erected and the manufacture of lumber was begun.
He thought it would be an excellent opening where he could find
lucrative employment coasting. So he bought a vessel and moved
to this place. His wife was Betsy Kent, whom he married before
coming here. He moved from this place to Mount Desert and later
to Ripley's Neck in the town of Harrington, then to Gouldsboro
where he took up a farm and spent the remainder of his life. He
died at the age of ninety-six years. His wife died at the age of
sixty-four years. They had a family of live children, of whom
Amelia was the oldest. She married a Mr. Robbins, of Harrington.
She died at the age of nearly ninety years. Another daughter,
Salome, was twice married. Her first husband was a Mr. Wheeler.
After his death she became the wife of Frederick Burns. Jonathan
Nutter, the oldest son, married Louisa Cole, of Harrington, by
whom he had fourteen children. One of these children, Albert,
perished on the south side of Nantucket Island during a winter
gale. He was mate of the schooner "Haines". They were driven
ashore and the whole crew lost. Other vessels were wrecked here
at the same time, and among the dead that washed ashore his body
could not be recognized. Isabell was the fourth child. She
married a Mr. Mitchell and resided in Boston. Reuben Nutter, the
youngest child, married Ruth Frfe, of Harrington. He is now an
inmate of the Sailor's home, Staten Island. He is a very old
man.
John
Rich
John Rich came here in 1794, and took up
the first lot of land on the eastern side of the island, a part
of which is now owned by Francis Torrey. He built a log house
near the shore. He remained here, however, only three years,
when he removed to Isle au Haut. Here he took up a lot of land
north of Robert Douglass, whose daughter he married.
When Mr. Rich left here his property
came into the possession of Moses Staples. It was said that he
came to this place from Mt. Desert. He had many relatives there.
Mrs. Rich was a woman of prepossessing
appearance. She was the mother of Capt. Stephen Rich, who
removed to Gloucester, out of which place he sailed as master in
the fishing business several years. He was an active,
enterprising man. He was lost at sea, together with all his
crew, in 1841.
Another son was Jonathan Rich, who was
an invalid for many years, and died not far from the year 1864.
Another son was Thomas Rich, who was
drowned in 1839.
The two remaining sons were Perez Rich,
who removed to Islesboro, and Stillman Rich, who became the
occupant of the property of Mr. Douglass.
There was one daughter in the family,
who was the first wife of Josiah Pierce, of Vinalhaven, and they
became converts to Mormonism and moved to Narvoo, Illinois.
While there she became disgusted with it, and made her escape.
With but little means she returned to her friends, and was
divorced. She afterwards became the wife of Noah Barter. She was
the mother of one daughter, who died some years ago. Mr. Rich,
sr., died near the year 1860, his wife surviving him a few
years.
William
Davis
William Davis, a relative of Mr. Rich,
came here also in 1794. He took up the lot of land adjoining
Rich on the north, now owned by Oilman Staples. He left with
Rich in 1797, and went to Long Island, which furnished a better
harbor to shelter his boat, and was more convenient to pursue
the fishing business. Mr. Davis has many descendants at Long
Island.
Richard
Carpenter
Richard Carpenter came here from some
town on the Penobscot River, and took up the lot now owned by
Mrs. Lenora Wharton and George E. Stanley. It contained one
hundred acres. I do not know the date of his coming, but he was
the first occupant of this land. His wife was Betsey Hamblen, of
Gott's island, by whom he had eight children, as follows:
Abigail, Nathaniel, Ambrose, Susan, Emmeline, John, Philip and
Margaret. None of these children settled here. Mr. Carpenter
built a house near the shore, below where Mrs. Wharton now
lives, where all his children were born. He was found dead in
the woods where he had gone to chop. After his death his widow
sold the place and went to Bucksport, where she became the wife
of Ephraim Emerson. After his death she married Charles Wheeler,
of Carmel.
Moses
Staples
Moses Staples came here in 1793 from
Deer Isle. He was, next to David Smith, the oldest permanent
settler, coming some two years later than Mr. Smith. He took up
a tract of one hundred acres adjoining Joshua Grindle on the
south. He was at this time the only settler on the west side of
the harbor. Here near the shore he built a log house and brought
his family. The crevices between the logs were plastered with
lime made by burning clam shells, which were found in great
quantities near where his house stood. Its location was near
where David Smith, 3d, now lives. Mr. Staples was a ship
carpenter, and came here because building material was plenty
and cheap. Excellent ship timber was made of the trees that grew
close to the water's edge, and small vessels were then in great
demand in the coasting trade.
After living on this lot for a few
years, he, in 1797 moved to the eastern part of the island, and
bought the lots just being vacated by John Rich and William
Davis. He also took up all the land north of the Davis lot to
the salt water. So his tract of land extended from where James
Joyce now lives to the end of Trask's point. Pie received a deed
of this lot together with the lot near Old Harbor from Rufus B.
Allyn, Swan's agent, in 1824, in consideration of the small sum
of $83.37, and gave Allyn a mortgage. He at first built a log
house just to the eastward of Joseph W. Staples' present
residence. Afterwards he built a frame house and barn. He did an
extensive business in shipbuilding at the place where Henry D.
Joyce now has his boat shop, and it is still called "The Yard".
One of the vessels built there, the "Arcadie", was seen in
Boston nearly sixty years after she was built, having, of
course, been several times repaired.
Moses Staples was born in 1753, and in
the year 1764 he came to Deer Isle with his parents. He had a
younger brother named Joshua, and one older brother. He had
several sisters, one of whom was Hannah, wife of Stephen
Babbidge: another was the wife of Courtney Babbidge, sr., after
whose death she became the wife of James Joyce, whom we shall
notice as one of the early settlers here. Another sister was the
second wife of Thomas Conary. By each of his wives Mr. Conary
had ten sons, twenty in all. Another sister was the wife of
Jonathan Torrey, and the last sister, Ann, was the wife of
Timothy Saunders.
The brother Joshua spoken of married a
daughter of John Raynes, sr., by whom he had one daughter, Jane,
who married Elias Morey, jr., who lived and died on this island.
The father of this Staples family was
impressed on board of an English man-of-war during the
Revolution, and was never heard from. The mother of this family,
Mrs. Mercy Staples, afterwards married a Mr. Hutchinson, of
Sedgwick, by whom she had two sons and one daughter. The sons
were Rev. David Hutchinson, a presiding elder in the Methodist
Episcopal Church in the western part of the State, and Timothy
Hutchinson, who lived and died on Little Deer Isle. The
daughter, Susan, was the wife of Capt. Benjamin Gray, of
Penobscot.
Moses Staples married Judith Eaton, of
Deer Isle, before coming here. They were the parents of thirteen
children. Their descendants formed the largest family on the
island.
After Mr. Staples' marriage he went from
Deer Isle to live in Sedgwick, where he remained about a year.
While there their first child was born. He came back to Deer
Isle. Seven children were born to them there, and after coming
back to Swan's Island the remaining five were born. Mr. Staples
was an active, intelligent man, who always took a great interest
in the transaction of town business, and was ever foremost for
public improvement.
In 1844, some two years previous to his
death, he very thoughtfully had a sworn statement drawn by
Joshua Trask, esq., of the dates when many of the earliest
settlers came, and the lots of land taken up by them. This was
prompted, no doubt, by the fact that no public records had been
made. This document has been a great help in making a record of
his family. He accumulated considerable property which he
disposed of before his death.
The lot of land bought of John Rich,
being the property of Francis Torrey and Asa Joyce, went to his
son, Moses Staples, 2d, in the year 1800. The lot he bought of
William Davis, which is now owned by Oilman Staples, he sold to
his son-in-law, John Finney, in 1803. The place now owned by
Joseph W. Staples went to his son, Abel E. Staples. The
remainder of the point of land he divided into two parts; the
eastern half he gave to his son Alexander, and the western half
to his son Mark.
Moses Staples died in 1846 at the age of
ninety-three years. His wife died three years before at the age
of eighty-seven years. The children of Moses and Judith Staples
were as follows:
The daughters were Elizabeth, wife of
John Finney; Dorcas, wife of John Skinner; they lived and died
in Boston: Mrs. Skinner died in 1839. Another daughter, Sarah,
married Capt. Thomas Bunker, of Cranberry Island. He was a
master mariner, and went on foreign voyages. Mrs. Bunker died at
the age of forty-five years. Her children were Thomas, Marietta,
Martha, Hulda, Joseph, Warren and Moses. Another daughter,
Hannah, died at the age of sixteen years, and the last daughter,
Judith, was the wife of Robert Mitchell.
The sons were Joshua, Alexander, Moses,
Samuel, Mark, Abel, Washington and Amos. The sons and their
families all settled here, and so will be further noticed.
I. Joshua Staples took
up a lot of land adjoining his father on the west in 1819. It is
the land now owned by Capt. John S. Staples. He built a house
over a cellar near where Emery Barbour's house now stands. His
wife was a daughter of Josiah Closson, of Deer Isle, by whom he
had fourteen children. Mr. Staples moved to Sedgwick, where he
died in 1860, at the age of seventy-seven years. His wife
survived him several years, dying at the age of eighty-one
years. The following are their children:
Abel, who, when a young man went to sea,
and was gone from home eighteen years, during which time he
visited nearly all parts of the world; he then came home and
married Caroline Kane, of Brooklin, where he resided until his
death, which took place by the capsizing of a boat in Eggmoggin
Reach; although he was an excellent swimmer, he was drowned;
this was due to his grasping a rope to which an anchor was
attached, and which he held firmly, thus keeping his head below
water until life was extinct; the other men, except John Ross,
who was also drowned, saved their lives by clinging to the boat;
Nathan, who settled in Sedgwick; he was a carpenter by trade;
his wife was Sally Grant; Isaac, who died at the age of eighteen
years; William, who lived and died at Bluehill; his wife was
Irena McFarland; Ephraim, who married Caroline Merchant, of
Merchant's Island, where he resided for a number of years, after
which he moved to Rockland where he died; Johnson, who at
present lives in Rockland: he is a carpenter by trade, and is
now foreman of the South End railway; his wife was Lucy Chatto,
of Long Island, in the town of Bluehill; Levi, who married
Hannahetta Staples, built a house near where Joseph Remick, whom
we shall notice, once settled; Capt. Ebenezer M., who lived for
some time at Deer Isle, married a daughter of Alexander Staples,
widow of Washington Staples, a singular occurrence, her maiden
name being Staples, as well as that of her two husbands.
The daughters were: Charlotta, wife of
Jonathan Bridges, of Sedgwick; Lucy, who died young; Sarah, who
married first David Whipple, and after his death became the wife
of John Murch, of Trenton, who is now dead; Lois, who was the
wife of Levi Closson; after his death she married Pickering
Eaton, of Sedgwick; she is now dead; Caroline, who was the wife
of John Hamilton, of Bluehill; Lydia, who died when a child.
II Alexander Staples
did not occupy the land left him by his father, but sold it to
Solomon Barbour, who moved here in 1843. Mr. Staples married
Margaret, daughter of John Stinson, of Deer Isle. After his
death she married Joseph Small, of Deer Isle. After Mr. Small's
death she came here to reside. She died in 1882. Mr. and Mrs.
Alexander Staples were the parents of the following children:
Isabel, first wife of Asa Joyce; Elizabeth, first the wife of
Washington Staples, and after his death the wife of Capt.
Ebenezer Staples; Hulda, wife of William Bunker, of Cranberry
Island, and who now resides in Massachusetts; Julia, wife of
Benjamin Gray, and Margaret, second wife of Joseph C. Judkins.
The last two reside at Deer Isle; one son, Amos, died when a
child.
III. Moses Staples, 2d,
in 1800 bought the tract of land first taken up by John Rich,
extending from the Finney to the Joyce lot. His wife was Betsey
Rufnelle, of Tremont, whose father was a Frenchman and came to
Mount Desert from Boston. They occupied for several years a log
house left by Mr. Rich, their first child being born there. He
afterwards built a house that was located just across the road
from where Francis Torrey now lives. Mr. Staples died in 1862,
aged eighty four years. Betsey, his wife, died in 1858, aged
seventy-seven years. They were the parents of ten children, the
first of whom was born in 1800. Most of the children settled
here, and they were an enterprising family.
Their daughters were: Mary, wife of
William Joyce; Hannah, wife of Rev. Benjamin F. Stinson; Sally,
first wife of Jacob Reed, who died in 1865, aged fifty-nine
years; Susan, wife of Edward Gott, who died in 1894, aged
seventy-seven years. Mrs. Stinson died in 1895, aged eighty-five
years. She was the last survivor of the family.
Their sons were: Franklin B., who bought
the land we have spoken of as being taken up by Joshua Staples;
it included all the land now owned by Capt. John S. Staples,
besides the lots owned by Capt. Ebenezer M. Staples, Thomas
Pinkham, Capt. Emery E. Joyce, Emery Barbour, Ellis R. Joyce and
William H. Burns; his wife was Lucy R. Smith, by whom he had
five children, as follows: Capt. Hezekiah Staples, who married
Abigail York, of Ellsworth, where he now resides; Oilman, whose
wife was Mercy Stockbridge, and resides on the Finney place;
Reuben, who died young; Capt. John S., whose first wife was
Rosilla Staples, who, together with her child, died of
diphtheria; he afterwards married her sister, Lucy J. Staples;
he owns the homestead lot; one daughter was the wife of Levi
Staples; Mr. Staples died in 1879, aged seventy-eight years;
Lucy R., his wife, died the same year, aged seventy-three.
Augustus R., who bought the Carpenter
lot, which contained one hundred acres, of the widow of Richard
Carpenter; he built the house where George E. Stanley now lives,
it being one of the oldest houses in town; his wife was Susan
Hamblen, of Gott's Island; Mr. Staples was a man endowed with a
good share of common sense, and was a practical business man,
serving the plantation in its early days in many positions of
trust; his death, which was much lamented, occurred in 1856, at
the age of forty-four years; his wife died July 4, 1875, at the
age of sixty-four years. Their children were: Amanda, widow of
Oliver L. Joyce, esq.; Nancy, widow of Lephen Babbidge, who now
resides in the West; Isadore, wife of Joseph Reed; soon after
their marriage she accompanied her husband on a voyage to New
York in a vessel which was lost, probably foundering in the gale
which overtook them soon after leaving New York; this was in the
year 1867; Mr. Reed's age was twenty-five and, his wife's
twenty-two years; Ida, who married Frank Staples and lives in
Rockland. There were two sons, between whom their father's land
was divided; Benjamin S. built a house to the eastward of his
father's; his wife was Lenora Joyce; he died in 1884, at the age
of forty-five years; after his death his widow married William
Wharton. The other son, Augustus W., married Abbie Barbour, of
Deer Isle, and resides here.
Moses, 3d, bought the Finney place and
built the house standing thereon; his wife was Mercy Smith. Mr.
Staples was subject to epileptic fits, and during one of these
seizures he fell upon a fire and received injuries from which he
died in 1845, at the age of twenty-six years.
Mrs. Staples afterward became the wife
of Benjamin S, Dolliver, of Mount Desert.
Washington had a part of his father's
land, being that now owned by Asa Joyce's heirs, and built the
house thereon. He died in 1849 and, as has already been stated,
his widow, Elizabeth, married Capt. Ebenezer M. Staples.
Simeon took his father's place, and with
him his parents lived during their latter days. His wife was
Saphrona Joyce. He was a carpenter, having learned his trade
with John Adams. He moved from this place to Rockland. His place
became the property of Francis M. Torrey. Mr. Staples died in
Rockland in 1892; his widow still resides there.
IV. Capt. Samuel Staples
married Ruth Bunker, of Cranberry Island, at which
place he lived for several years, afterwards going to Lubec and
finally to Bangor, where he died in 1853, aged sixty-six years.
They were the parents of seven children: Hannah, Philo, Samuel,
Isaac, George, Priscilla, Judith.
V. Mark Staples married
Lydia Gott, of Mount Desert. He built a house near where John
Stockbridge afterwards lived. He then sold this place and
occupied the land left him by his father, which we have spoken
of, it being the land now occupied by Capt. Olando Trask, Henry
D. Joyce, Jefferson Torrey and Elmer I. Joyce estate. He built a
house near where Capt. Trask's now stands. He afterwards moved
to Aroostook County, and subsequently moved many times, being of
a roving nature.
He died at Rockland in 185 1, at the age
of sixty-one years.
VI. Abel E. Staples
took up the lot of land extending westward from his brother
Joshua. It begins to the western line of Capt. John S. Staples'
land, and extends around the cove to the land now owned by
Reuben Joyce; it contained one hundred acres. He was the first
settler on this land. He built a house near where Herbert W.
Joyce's store now stands. In 1837 he moved upon his father's
place, and lived with his parents until their death. His wife
was Rebecca Whitmore, of Deer Isle. They were the parents of ten
children. The daughters were: Mary E., wife of Joshua Trask,
esq., who was lost in the Bay of Chaleur in the great gale of
October 3, 185 1, aged forty-four years; after his death she
married Philip Moore, of Gott's Island; she is now dead;
Abigail, wife of Stephen B. Lane, of Deer Isle; Joanna, wife of
Capt. Levi Terrey; she died in 1887 at the age of sixty-six
years; Harriet N., widow of Solomon Barbour; Louisa, wife of
Henry D. Joyce. The sons were: Samuel W., John, Joseph, who died
young, Seth W., and Joseph W.
Abel Staples died in 185 1, aged
sixty-six years; his wife died in 1873, aged eighty-one years.
Previous to his death he divided his property among his three
sons. Joseph W. and Samuel W. received the homestead lot and the
western part of the lot he first took up (that lot extending
from Reuben Joyce's to near the steamboat road). The rest of
this lot, extending from the steamboat road to the land of Capt.
John S. Staples, went to the other brother, John. Samuel died in
1883, aged sixty two years. After his death his part of the
property went to his brother Joseph W. Joseph W. married
Caroline Stinson, of Deer Isle; she died in 1874, aged
forty-five years; after her death he married Mrs. Ellen Stanley,
of Gouldsboro. John built the house now owned by Alfred W.
Joyce; he was a master mariner, and accumulated considerable
property; during the latter part of his life he was engaged in
trading. He was three times married; in 1841 he married Maria
Barbour, who died in 1874, aged fifty-one years; after her death
he married Mrs. Helen Merrill, who died in 1880, aged
forty-eight years; his last wife was her sister, Mrs. Henrietta
Marshall; all of his wives belonged in Deer Isle. He died in
1891, aged seventy-one years. His children were: Capt. Benjamin
J., who is a merchant here; Capt. Charles, who died in 1888,
aged thirty-eight years; Matilda, wife of Levi B. Joyce; Rosilla
and Lucy J., wives of Capt. John S. Staples; Durilla, wife of
Herbert W. Joyce; Maria, wife of Andrew Torrey. There were
several other children who died young.
VII. Washington died
when a young man. He was taken ill while on a sea voyage, and
was brought into Cranberry Island, where he died.
VIII. Amos died young
in 1807.
Joseph
Remick
Joseph Remick
came here from Hancock soon after the war of 1812. For a few
years he lived in a house with Deacon James Joyce; afterwards he
built a house to the west of where Mrs. Hannahetta Staples now
lives, the cellar of which can still be seen. Mr. Remick married
Miss Priscilla Noble, of Mount Desert, by whom he had nine
children. They left this place in 1830 and returned to Hancock.
Later they moved to Roxbury, Mass., where Mr. Remick died in the
year 1834, aged nearly fifty years. Mrs. Remick, after the death
of her husband, made her home in Ellsworth, where she died.
Their children were as follows: Reuben died in Ellsworth; his
wife was Mary A. Finney; Nathan was lost at sea; he was with his
brother returning home from a coasting trip. One day during the
voyage he was at work in the yawl boat at the davits, when one
of the falls broke and precipitated him into the water. He
seized two oars as he fell, which kept him afloat. In the
excitement of lowering the boat, the painter was dropped and the
boat drifted away. The wind died away so that the vessel could
not be managed. Hatches and everything that would float were
thrown to the now helpless man, but being unable to swim he
could not reach them. For over half an hour he sustained himself
within speaking distance of the vessel. At last a small wave
rolled over his head when he sank from view. He was twenty-one
years of age, and was to have been married on his return home.
The other children of Mr. and Mrs. Remick were Philip, who
married Maria Milliken and settled in Ellsworth; Capt. Lewis
Remick, who married Elizabeth Milliken; after her death he
married Henrietta Jordan; they lived at Bayside, Ellsworth;
Hannah was the wife of Mr. Carlton, of Boston; Catherine was the
wife of George Lorn, of Boston; Phebe married Dr. John F. W.
Lane, of Boston; Judith was the wife of Capt. Watts, of
Ellsworth, and Margaret was the wife of Gardiner Milliken, of
Ellsworth.
The only
survivors of this family are Philip, Lewis and Mrs. Lane.
Source: A History of Swan's Island,
Maine, by H.W. Small, MD, Ellsworth Me, Hancock County
Publishing Company, Printers, 1808
Index
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