Thomas Jason Libby and Harriet Ann Farrar (couple 12)

[Jen's maternal GGGGrandparents]
[Ray Mitchell Jr > Elsie F. Plummer > Isa May Libby > couple 12]

Thomas Jason Libby
BIRTH: 24 Mar 1840, Scarborough, Cumberland, Maine
DEATH: 17 April 1894, Augusta, Kennebec, Maine, United States


Harriet Ann Farrar
BIRTH: 21 Nov 1846, Columbia, Maury, Tenn.
DEATH: 15 Jul 1931, Scarborough, Cumberland, Maine

Thomas Jason Libby
A very extensive document describing the Family Context for the Libbys of Prout's Neck is written here, detailing the hotel industry and how the land was divided.  Additional history of Scarborough is written here.

Thomas Jason Libby was born to  Silas Libby (1811-1878) and Hannah Haines (1814-1843) on 24 April, 1840 in Scarborough.  Hannah died (1 Dec 1843) soon after the delivery of he second child, Hannah Louise (born 21 September 1843, m Alonzo Googins).  This disruption was unfortunate and a hardship.

1850 Census
Thomas J is living in the household of Thomas Libby (grandfather) where Silas J is living at the time. The household of Thomas Libby has a host of children and grandchildren.

Thomas's father Silas remarried in 1851 at age 40 to Pheobe Libby (1816-1898), a distant cousin from another Scarborough Libby family.  Phoebe had one daughter, Anna Maria (1854-1876) with Silas.  Anna Maria was married upon her deathbed to Ira Foss (1856-1919), who became proprietor of The Checkley, a grand hotel around the turn of the century.

For the 1860 Census, Thomas J (20) and Annie M (5) listed as children of Silas and Phoebe, working in Scarborough. 

Thomas J Libby enlisted November 15, 1861 in the Army, and was later discharged in 1864.  He was a Private in Company C, 12th Regiment of Maine.  (Papa Mitchell has his Civil War Medallion from his Army uniform).

The company took several cities in Louisiana, and established Union Presence there.  It is undoubtedly where Thomas had met Harriet Ann Farrar.

As a little back-story to the Libbys on Prouts Neck, Thomas Jason's grandfather is known as the first hotel operator on Prouts Neck, The Prouts Neck House. Silas had built a house called The Cammock House next door to the his father's (Thomas Libby) Prouts Neck House.  To the east of The Cammock House, Thomas J. Libby built The West Point House.

from here.

For more information on the houses, see this book about Scarborough, by Rodney Laughton, 1996.  See also this description of the destiny of the Cammock house.


Harriet Ann Farrar

Harriet Kerchival, mother

Harriet Ann Farrar was born in Columbia TN on 21 November 1846 to Edmund W Farrar and Harriet Ann Kerchival.  They had been married in New Orleans in 1838.  They are recorded to have 3 children, all born in Tennessee.

1. John Edmund  1839-??)
2. Mary Alice(1842-1908) m 1863 James A Fisher (1831-??)
3. Harriet Ann (1846-1931) m. 1864 Thomas Jason Libby (18404-1894)

Harriet Ann Farrar, daughter.

Her mother, Harriet Ann died in 1850, leaving Edmund a young widower.  In 1860, Edmund W Farrar (54) is living in the household of Susan Griffiths (30) in Nashville, presumably as a hired man.  The death record of Harriet's sister, Mary Alice (b 1842), says that their father was Colonel Farrar.

Colonel Farrar may have been the means to introduce Thomas Jason to his daughter Harriet, though it is unknown.  The supposition is that with the Union Army presence in and around New Orleans, that is how they met. 

Life Together

By 1870 Thomas had married Harriet Ann Farrar, a beautiful gal from Tennessee, and had three kids.  Their oldest, John J K was born in Louisiana, while Isie M  (2) and Veranus W (1) were born in Maine. Their move to Maine would have been in the 1865/1866 time frame.  His parents Silas and Pheobe also have a 15 year old Milton at their house, though he may have been a hired boy.

1. John Kerchival  (1865-1940) m 1888 Edith F Taylor (1867-1954)
2. Mary Lillian  (1866-1866)
3. Isa May  (1867-1931) m 1888 Edward Clark Plummer (1860-1941)
4. Veranus "Uncle Vene" Warren (1868-1940) m 1894 Edith E Chase (1874-1936)
5. Leonard Wilson (1871-1962) m 1891 Evelyn May Osborne (1878-1959)
6. Annie Louise (1874-1900) m 1893 Fred Dickson Wish Sr (1867-1937)
7. Lloyd Lester (1876-1931) m 1901 Alice Lillian Gilson (1874-1938)

LtoR: Lloyd (cart), John, Veranus, Lester, Isa, Annie (seated)

In October 1879 around the time of Aunt Minerva's death, there was a major split of property ownership at Prout's Neck.  Of interest (from the document linked above, a must-read), Thomas Jason's sister, Hannah Louise was basically raised at grandfather Thomas Libby's house.  She was one of the primary inheritors of most of the land on Prout's neck from Aunt Minerva, (unmarried sister to Silas, and preceeded in death by sister Sophrona, who was part owner in the land they received from father Thomas Libby).

In 1880, life is pretty good for Thomas (farming) and Hattie, and their 6 kids at home:  John  (15), Isa M (12), Veranus W (11), Leonard W (8), Anna L (6),  Lloyd L (6), and a servant named Emily Bragdon (24).
(The census taker was relatively lazy, and doesn't appear to have asked the family members where they were born!)

Thomas J had been keeper of a small summer hotel between at least 1875 and 1884.  

"Harris Seavey's coach is in front of the Prouts Neck House, which was the first hotel built at the neck. It was also referred to as the Middle House.  The house was the residence of Thomas Libby. Later, it was cut in two sections and part of it moved. The portion that was moved became the V.T. Shaw's store and remained a seasonal store in 2012.  This coach was used in the play "Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm." from here:

Thomas J apparently suffered from mental health issues, and went to town acting erratically on September 5, 1884.  He was accused and later convicted of 2nd degree murder of Lydia Snow at City Hotel, Portland.

Harriet Farrar Libby

Thomas  died in Augusta in 1894 (likely at the state mental hospital), caused by general paralysis (probably a stroke), and was buried at Black Point.  He was attended by Dr. P H S Vanghan, MD of Augusta. (Note here in Boston Medical and Surgical Journal, 1902)

The documents about the hotels of Prouts Neck seem to indicate that without Thomas, Hattie had a hard time keeping up the hotel.  It's possible that at age 38, 1884, she tried to keep the house, farm, and hotel for a little while, but failed to make payments and lost the property and had to move in with relatives.
 We know that Isa May modeled for a few of Winslow Homer's paintings in the mid-1880s, and Len Libby worked for Winslow Homer as a house boy.

Around 1890, the Libby children started to get married and establish homes of their own, so it's possible that they sold the property and moved out at that point.

 Harriet's mother-in-law, Phebe died in 1898.

John, Isa, Veranus, Lloyd, Len, Harriet

At the time of son Lloyd Lester Libby's marriage to in 1901, though, Harriet was living in Montreal, Quebec.

 By 1920, Harriet lived in South Portland with her daughter Isa May and  her husband Edward C and their daughter Elsie, and her son Veranus, listed as a Widower.  Ed is a Vulcanizer, Veranus is retired.

Veranus was divorced (rather than a widower, error on Census), as his wife Edith E and children Napoleon B Libby and Hazel M Libby show up  in John Knowlton's Household in Cambridge, Ma in 1910.

In 1930 Census, Harriet still lived with her daughter, Isa May and Ed Plummer (listed as a "vulcanizer", which was a tire repair shop-- both patching tires and applying new treads) until the time of her death.

Isa died in 1931 at her home on 148 Q Street, South Portland, ME, where she had lived for 30 years.

According to Raymond V Mitchell, Jr (Papa!), when the roads were being updated for 911 telephone service, the town asked Norman A Plummer if he had any input on what the extension of Q Street should be called (that was not connected to the northern section of Q Street), and having an affinity for Winston Churchill, he suggested it should be called Churchill Road.  The house still stands at the north-eastern side of Churchill road.

Extra links:
1884 Registry, Scarborough
More photos available on FamilySearch.org.

Alvin Plummer and Ellen J Boucher (couple 11)

[Jen's maternal GGGGrandparents]
[Ray Mitchell Jr > Elsie F. Plummer > Edward Clark Plummer > couple 11]

Alvin Plummer
BIRTH: 16 JUL 1827, Raymond,Cumberland,Maine
DEATH: 14 Feb 1888, Scarborough, Cumberland, Maine

Ellen J Boucher
BIRTH: 29 Jan 1836, Cape Elizabeth, Cumberland, Maine
DEATH: 20 Mar 1904, Portland, Cumberland, Maine, United States

Alvin Plummer
Alvin Plummer was the last child born in 1827 to William Plummer (1780-1828) and Hannah Plummer (1787-1877) (they were first cousins), the 9th of 10.

1. William Plummer Jr (1806-1877) m Jane Harmon (1813-1890)
2. Harriet Plummer (1807-1894) m 1825 John Hayden (1800-1846)
3. Ai Plummer (1810-1872) m 1840 Judith (1820-??)
4. Elizabeth (1813-??)
5. Daniel (1815-1845) m. Catherine
6. Mary Jane  (1817-1906) m 1842 Ai Plummer Sevey (1815-1899)
7. Hannah (1820-??)
8. Jason (1822-1897) m Caroline Libby (1821-??)
9. Jesse (1824-1862)
10. Alvin (1827-1888) m. 1853 Ellen J Boucher (1836-1904)

Alvin's father died shortly before his first birthday, so he never had memories of his father. 

Uncle Jesse's house, from Raymond and Casco

1850 Census
 When Alvin was 23 years old, he owned $475 worth of real estate, and worked as a farmer, but was living with his mother Hannah and and step-father Samuel Davis (1794-1873).  The region of Raymond, ME which they farmed has multiple Davis and Plummer families, which brings to context how so many cousins ended up marrying one another.

Ellen Boucher
At the same time (in 1850), Ellen was 15, living with her parents, Joseph Boucher (1804-1854) and Sarah Cheever Plummer (1811-1893), farming with their 8 children in Cape Elizabeth.  Joseph was from Belfast, Ireland, and Sarah was from Scarborough.  The farm value at the time was $600, and the two oldest sons were working the farm with their dad.  The farm was medium sized, compared to the neighbors.

1. James  (1833-1907)
2. Joseph H  Jr. (1834-1903) m Adelaide C Dorrothy (1843-1922)
3. Ellen J (1836-1904) m 1853 Alvin Plummer (1827-1888)
4. Ernestine (1838-??)  m 1865 Edward Rackleff Clark (1839-1913)
5. John William (1841-??) m 1870 Fannie Elizabeth Folsom (1844-??)
6. Sarah (1846-??) m 1868 E Frank Boothby (1845-??)
7. Minerva L (1848-??)  m 1869 John L Winship (1845-??)
8. Frederick M (1851-??) m Jennie Haggett (1853-??)

There may have been one other male child older than James, because the 1840 census says there was a 10-15 year old boy in the house.  (Though it could have been a hired boy to help with the farm).

Ellen's father passed away in 1854, before any of Ellen and Alvin's children were born.  Sarah would continue to live for about 40 years as a widow in Cape Elizabeth.

In 1870, her oldest son James (in 1870), who was a rolling mill employee, was head of house.  Also, in 1870, Minerva (22) and her husband, John Winship (24, a brush maker) lived with them, and their little baby, Frank A (7 mos).  Fred (20) and his wife Jennie (17) also lived with the family.

Sarah died in 1893 "of jaundice", and was buried in South Portland in Brown's Hill Cemetery.

Life Together
Alvin married Ellen J Boucher on April 16, 1853 in Cape Elizabeth.  They

postcard, from here

established a household in Raymond initially, before moving to Scarborough a few decades later.  They subsequently had 9 children, all of whom survived to adulthood.

Children
1. Joseph B (1855-1936) m 1878 Isabel Folsom (1849-??)
2. Samuel Davis (1857-1917) m. 1892 Alice Haven Witham (1867-1930)
3. Edward Clark (1860-1941) m. 1888 Isa May Libby (1867-1931)
4. Ada Louise (1861-1934)
5. Sarah (1863-1935) m. 1888 Frank Delang Sterling (1863-1940)
6. Harriet Ellen (1867-1951) m 1891 Charles F Ayer (1865-??)
7. Almira Hasty (1870-1955)
8. Caroline M (1873-1934) m 1894 Albert S Witham (1869-1930)
9. Clifford Alvin (1878-1965) m 1901 Clara Louise Hayes (1871-1923) m2. 1923 Marie Bosworth (1895-??)

Brief history of Raymond.
Images
1860 Census
By 1860, Alvin and Ellen had three children, Joseph B (1856), Samuel (1857), and Edward (1860).  They were farming in Raymond during that point.

At some point during this decade, he moved his family, along with his mother and step-father  from Raymond into a single household in Scarborough.

1870 Census

Nearby NoneSuch Farm, 1900 ft. Ebenezer Scott Libby

 In the town of Scarboro, using the Post Office at Windham, Alvin and Ellen are working a $3000 farm with their four children, Joseph (15), Samuel (13), Sarah (7), and Hattie (3).  Samuel and Hannah Davis have moved back in with them (ages 75 and 83, respectively), along with house helper Cornelius Leary.

1880 Census
 Alvin (53) and Ellen (47) have a good farm, and Samuel (23), Ada L (18), Sarah (16), Hattie (12), Almira (9), Carrie (7), and Clifford (2) are at home.

Alvin died on Valentines Day 1888 in Scarborough at age 60, and was buried in Black Point Cemetery.

Ellen would go live with her son Samuel (42) and his wife Alice (32) and their 7 kids (a politician who lived at 138 Eastern Promenade, Portland), and live until 10 March 1904, at age 70 due to diabetes.  She was buried at Black Point Cemetery, Scarborough.

Samuel Davis Libby was later the Sherriff of Portland, and his brother Edward Plummer was one of his deputies.  Samuel D. Plummer later ran Nonesuch Farm, and was known as a Portland real estate agent, legislator, sheriff and pig farmer.

MORE on SCARBOROUGH

William Lampher Mitchell and Edith May Hussey (son of 9 & daughter of 10)

[Jen's maternal GGrandparents]
[Raymond V. Mitchell Jr > William V Mitchell Sr > son of  9 & daughter of 10]

William Lampher Mitchell
BIRTH: 04 Aug 1871,Biddeford, York, Maine
DEATH: 03 JUN 1943

Edith May Hussey
BIRTH: 09 Jan 1874, Biddeford, York, Maine
DEATH: 20 Mar 1940, South Portland, Cumberland, Maine, United States

William Mitchell

William L Mitchell was the youngest child of Lorenzo

Mitchell (1827-1904) and Miriam Lamphar (1828-1924).  They lived and worked in Biddeford.  The 1910 census says that Miriam had 6 children, 6 of whom were living in 1900, but 4 of whom were living in 1910.

Siblings:
1. Samuel (1856-??)  (records unavailable)
2. Alonzo C (1858-1949) m1. Rose Ann Davis (1856-??) m2. Sarah V Sargent (1853-??) m3. 1900 Altis Maud Hill (1874-1974)
3. Thomas W (1861-1909) m. 1884 Minna E Spindler (1865-1930)
4. Marietta L (1863-1945) m. 1885 Freeman E Rankin (1849-??)
5. Abigail L (1867-1965) m2. 1887 Augustus Vincent Gookin (1867-??) m2. 1896 Roswell Delano Flood (1851-1923)
6. William Lampher (1871-1943) m 1896 Edith May Hussey (1874-1940) m2. 1914 Nancy Lavina Wildes (1868-1951)


Edith Hussey

Edith May Hussey was born in 1874 to Charles Hussey (1836-1905) and Eliza Jane Wildes (1840-1910) in Biddeford, Maine.  They lived in the city ward 1.  Her father, by 1880, had changed from being a fisherman to being a laborer.  They own a $2000 in real estate, and had $300 in personal effects.

Siblings
1. Charles S (1862-1919)
2. Lucy Arvilla (1865-1943) m 1885 Andrew Jackson Hill (1846-1888) m. 1891 Frank Herbert Worden (1864-1951) m 1906 Jones (1865-??)
3. Jennie S (1868-1942) m. Horace B Evans (1865-1940)
4. Sallie E (1870-1923) m. 1895 Wallace E Smith (1871-1947)
5. Olive G (1872-??) m. 1904 Ivory H Emmons (1865-??)
6. Edith May (1874-1940) m1. 1896 William Lampher Mitchell (1871-1943) m2 Wright F Emmons (1870-??)
7. Mary E (1877-??)
8. Juanita J May (1880-1969) m. 1903 Truman Post Goldthwaite (1882-1944)

Biddeford's Wood Island Lighthouse

As a girl, her family lived next to John C Hussy(70) and Sallie (68), the Hussy grandparents, with a $9000 farm and $4000 in personal effects, which indicates great relative wealth for the area.  (They have two cooks, two chambermaids, and a boy living with them).  Also worthy of note, the Census taker wrote "Huzzy" for their name, which is indicative of pronounciation.

Two houses down is Edwin Tarbox, Charles' uncle, who is Lighthouse Keeper at Biddeford.

In 1885, when daughter Lucy first married, they were living at Biddeford Pool.

Life Together
Edith and William married 31 December, 1896.   Together they had 4 children:

1. Raymond Vaughn Sr (1897-1964) m 1920 Elsie Farrar Plummer  (1899-1955), m2. 1946 Ruby Beatrice Gibson (1905-1996)
2. Mildred Verne (1900-1996) m. 1926 Alfred Hale Taylor (1899-1991)
3. Donald Day  (1904-1906)
4. Alice May (1905-1989)

Life together was not without its hiccups.  William is listed as a machinist on Alice's birth record.

Before he turned two in 1906, their son Donald passed away of pneumonia.  At the time, they had a 7 month old Alice as well.  Family stories indicate that the stresses from the tragedy caused Edith to have a nervous break-down that led to William and Edith splitting up and sending their children away.


In 1910, Edith was living with her mother Eliza, with the divorce not yet finalized.  According to that year's census, Edith was employed as a dress-maker. She would remarry the next year to Wright F Emmons (1870-??), who was a carpenter, (also second marriage after Lydia A Roberts, I believe)  in 1911 and lived on First Street, Biddeford.  She continued to live in Biddeford for the rest of her life until she died in March 1940.  Wright was living on Fortunes Rocks Road the year Edith died.

 

Raymond V Mitchell, b 1897

William boarded at 43 Free Street, Portland during the 1910 census.  He is listed as Divorced, and working as a fisherman.  He remarried  to Nancy Lavina Wildes (1868-1951) in 1914, and we can trace him through 1940.  He moved to Kennebunkport, and lived there for the remainder of his life.

Raymond was sent to the Good Will Home in Fairfield, Maine, where he appears on the census as of April 1910.  The Good Will home was a school where boys being raised in at-risk home situations could learn and work and thrive, whereas at home there was trouble.  While away at the Good Will home Raymond Sr. made several requests to come home, but due to the unknown tensions, Edith would not allow it.  He married Elsie Farrar Plummer in 1920, and had four children.

Mildred V Mitchell

Mildred was in some sort of home for girls in Portland.  As of 1920, she was living in Augusta in the household of Edmund Hunt as a boarder.  She married in 1926, and in 1930, she was in Vassalboro, Maine with her husband Alfred Taylor, and had started her own family with their baby Barclay C Taylor (1929-2008).

Alice was placed for adoption, on account of her being so young and easily adoptable.  She moved to California with her adoptive family.  In her old age, she reached out to Aunt Midge as a first contact.  At the time, Mildred was in the hospital, so she put down the letter with the intent to respond, but she couldn't find the letter again (and it's address) to respond. Thus, contact with Alice was lost, and we don't even have a record of her adopted name or marriage/children, etc.

The children had irregular contact with their parents during the subsequent years, as the family had tragically fallen apart. 

Charles Hussey and Eliza Jane Wildes (couple 10)

[Jen's maternal GGGGrandparents]
[Ray Mitchell Jr > Ray Mitchell Sr > Edith M Hussey > couple 10]

Charles Hussey
BIRTH: 8 Aug 1836, Biddeford, York, Maine, United States
DEATH: 25 August 1905, Biddeford, York, Maine, United States


Eliza Jane Wildes
BIRTH: 19 Apr 1840, of Biddeford, Yrk, Maine
DEATH: 1910,Biddeford, York, Maine, United States

Charles Hussey
Charles Hussey was born in 1836, the fourth of four children to John C Hussey (1800-1876) and Sally Tarbox (or Tarbeaux) (1801-1880).  His father was a farmer.

Of historical note, his grandfather's (Christopher's) Grandfather Bachelor Hussey was the original purchaser of half of the neck at Biddeford Pool, and Wood Island back in 1734.  From Shores of Saco Bay, "Chistopher Hussey and Eunice Cole were the first to entertain visitors or pleasure parties at Biddeford Pool, and may be considered the pioneers of the hotel business at this place.  Mr. Hussey died in 1834, and his wife survived him until 1851."
People recalled:

Uncle Christopher's — of his genial hospitality, and of her motherly solicitude for their comfort. One mentions her cheerful sweet face under
mob-cap and huge black-bowed spectacles as she inquired if " thee is comfortable, or will thee be helped to anything." Christopher, Jr., or "Chris," succeeded his father in the entertainment of visitors at
tie Pool. He inherited his parents' hospitality as well as the old homestead, and for the last forty-five years all visitors to the Pool have heard of good times and dinners at "Chris" Hussey's. Mr. Hussey died in 1876, and his widow, who was Mary Goldthwait, and her two daughters, continue the hotel business at the old Mansion House, and entertain their visitors in the same hospitable manner as their predecessors.

from Gleanings from the Sea

(The family were historically Quakers.)  Mansion house perspective.
More on the historical Husseys

Extensive photos of Biddeford Pool stored here, or as a slideshow.
Compare this street-view with this old view. The mansion house no longer stands.
History of Biddeford

Siblings
1. Mary Elizabeth (1824-??)  m 1842 Alison Smith (1818-1895)
2. Belinda  (1826-1873) m. 1845 Richard Humphrey (1814-1883)
3. John Henry (1831-1905) m. 1854 Mary Polly Johnson Tarbox (1828-1904)
4. Charles (1836-1905) m 1857 Eliza Jane Wildes (1840-1910)

1850 Census, Charles shows up with his parents John (50) and Sally (47) and older siblings on a $2000 farm in Biddeford.  That's the most valuable farm of their immediate neighbors.


Eliza Jane Wildes
Eliza Jane Wildes was born in 1840, the second of four children to John Wildes (1811-??) and Mehitable Thomas (1814-??) in Biddeford, Maine.  They had been married 14 May 1835

Siblings
1. Clarinda (1837-??) m. Warren Emmons
2. Eliza Jane (1840-1910) m. 1857 Charles Hussey (1836-1905)
3. Joseph (1844-1938) m. 1865 Julia A McBride (1846-1900)
4. Melinda (1847-??)

The 1850 Census shows that John Wildes (39) was a farmer with a $1400 farm with his wife Mehitable (36), four kids, and perhaps some notation of a pauper, Samuel Pike (30) living with them.  They lived in the midst of several Benson families in Biddeford.

Life Together
Charles (21) and Eliza (17) were married in Weymouth, Norfolk, Massachusetts on 31 October, 1857 by clergyman Joshua Emory.

1860 Census
By 1860, Charles (23) and Eliza (20), with Eliza's sister Melinda (14), were living in Biddeford.

Children:
1. Charles S (1862-1919)
2. Lucy Arvilla (1865-1943) m 1885 Andrew Jackson Hill (1846-1888) m. 1891 Frank Herbert Worden (1864-1951) m 1906 Jones (1865-??)
3. Jennie S (1868-1942) m. Horace B Evans (1865-1940)
4. Sallie E (1870-1923) m. 1895 Wallace E Smith (1871-1947)
5. Olive G (1872-??) m. 1904 Ivory H Emmons (1865-??)
6. Edith May (1874-1940) m1. 1896 William Lampher Mitchell (1871-1943) m2 Wright F Emmons (1870-??)
7. Mary E (1877-??)
8. Juanita J May (1880-1969) m. 1903 Truman Post Goldthwaite (1882-1944)



1870 Census
Charles and Eliza now have 4 more children at home:  Charles S (1862), Lucy Arvilla (1865), Jennie (1868), and Sallie (1870, b. Feb).  Charles is a fisherman, owning a $2000 house, and having $300 worth of personal effects.

1880 Census
By 1880, Charles is no longer listed as a fisherman, but as a laborer.  they had added four more children: Olive (1872), Edith (1874), Mary (1877), and an Juanita, their two-month old daughter (1880).  Though a fisherman, they own a $2000 farm and have $300 in personal effects.

Biddeford's Wood Island Lighthouse

They live next to John C Hussy(70) and Sallie (68), the Hussy grandparents, with a $9000 farm and $4000 in personal effects, which indicates great relative wealth for the area.  (They have two cooks, two chambermaids, and a boy living with them).  Also worthy of note, the Census taker wrote "Huzzy" for their name, which is indicative of pronounciation.

Two houses down is Edwin Tarbox, Charles' uncle, who is Lighthouse Keeper at Biddeford.

In 1885, when daughter Lucy first married, they were living at Biddeford Pool.

Dressing Fish at Biddeford Pool, c 1885.

1900 Census
Eliza (58) and Charles (69) are living in Biddeford in a neighborhood full of other Hussey's, Goldthwaits, and Tarbox's.  Family and friends!  Charles is a day laborer (mostly retired).  At home with them are Olive (27) and Juanita (20), their single daughters, their son Charles S (38), who has been married for 15 years, and Andrew J Hill, their grandson.   Eliza reports having birthed 11 children, of whom 8 survive.

1903 When Juanita married, Charles (67) is listed with occupation of sailor.
1904, when Olive married, Charles is listed as  a fisherman.

Charles died on 25 August 1905, and is buried in the Woodlawn Cemetery in Biddeford.  His occupation on his death record is "Sea Captain."  He is reported to have died of Brights disease (modern term is "nephritis" or kidney disease).

In 1910, Eliza was living with her son Charles S, unemployed, who was listed as married, but likely was separated.   Also in the house was daughter Edith M Hussey Mitchell, who had been married 13 years prior to a William Mitchell, a fisherman, and recorded to have four children  Raymond V, Mildred, Donald, and Alice.

Lorenzo D Mitchell and Miriam F Lampher (couple 9)

[Jen's maternal GGGGrandparents]
[Ray Mitchell Jr > Ray Mitchell Sr > William L Mitchell > couple 9]

Lorenzo Dow Mitchell
BIRTH:10 June 1827, Saco, York, Maine
DEATH: 27 Nov 1904, Biddeford, York, Maine

Miriam F Lampher
BIRTH: 28 Jun 1828, Biddeford, York, Maine
DEATH: 11 May 1924, Biddeford, York, Maine, United States

Lorenzo Dow
Lorenzo Dow Mitchell was born in 1827, the 7th of 9 children to James Mitchell (1778-1864) and Hannah Emery (1794-1849).  (His death record says he was born at Saco)

Lorenzo Dow Mitchell

1. Hannah Scamman Mitchell (1810-1890), died single of old age or fall.  Took care of her dad before he passed.
2. Lucy Ann Mitchell (1813-??) m 1832 Stephen J Fletcher (1810-1880)
3. Elizabeth Mitchell (1816-1902) m1 Josiah N Langley (1813-??) m2. 1848 Samuel Felker (??-??)
4. Moses C Scamman Mitchell (1819-??) m 1839 Mary Verrill (1818-??)
5. James Jr. Mithell (1820-??)
6. Mumphrey R Scamman Mitchell (1824-1888) m. 1849 Betsey Ann Ballard (1826-1908)
7. Lorenzo Dow Mitchell (1827-1904) m1 1848 Mary Jane Emery Felker (1826-1854) m2 1855 Miriam F Lampher (1828-1924)
8. Mary Mitchell (1828-??)
9. Richard L Mitchell (1832-??) 1853 Harriet H Merrill (1832-??)



He was married at age 20 on 23 Feb 1848 to Mary Jane Emery Felker (b. 1826, d. 1854).

1850 Census
Biddeford, York, Maine
Lorenzo lived under the Gilpatrick household in 1850, working as a mariner.  He was married to Mary at the time.

The records seem to indicate that they had one child, Samuel L Mitchell (b. 7 Dec 1854), and Mary died that same day due to complications of childbirth there in Biddeford, Maine.

{This needs to be corroborated, because later census seem to indicate that Samuel, perhaps the first one died?, was born in 1857, and 2nd wife Miriam had 6 children of which 6 survived to adulthood.  This might have to include Samuel, her stepson, who doesn't show up on the 1880 Census.} 

Miriam Lampher

Miriam F Lampher

Miriam F Lampher was born in 1828 to Samuel Deering Lampher and Miriam Tarbeaux Felker in Biddeford, ME, the second of 8 children.  Her father had passed away in 1849, leaving Miriam the oldest child at home to help take care of the family.  At the time of the 1850 Census, six children are listed, along with three lodgers.

1. Abigail Lamphar (1827-1827)
2. Miriam F Lampher (1828-1924) m 1855 Lorenzo Dow Mitchell (1827-1904)
3. Abigail Lamphar (1830-1863) m 1856 N M Cole (1828-??)
4. Sarah Marial Lamphar (1832-??)
5. Catherine B Lamphar (1834-1909) m 1856 Frank C Larrabee (1830-??)
6. George Lamphar (1836-1850)
7. William V Lamphar (1837-??)
8. Pauline Lamphar (1839-??)

Miriam's Parents, Samuel Deering Lamphar and Miriam Tarbeaux Felker

Life Together

At the time of their marriage, Lorenzo had been residing in Saco, and Miriam had been living in Biddeford.  On 1 April 1855, Lorenzo Mitchell married Miriam Lampher in Biddeford, ME, under the hand of Joseph Libby, Preacher of the Gospel.

Children:
0. Samuel, see above.
1. Alonzo C (1858-1949) m1. Rose Ann Davis (1856-??) m2. Sarah V Sargent (1853-??) m3. 1900 Altis Maud Hill (1874-1974)
2. Thomas W (1861-1909) m. 1884 Minna E Spindler (1865-1930)
3. Marietta L (1863-1945) m. 1885 Freeman E Rankin (1849-??)
4. Abigail L (1867-1965) m2. 1887 Augustus Vincent Gookin (1867-??) m2. 1896 Roswell Delano Flood (1851-1923)
5. William Lampher (1871-1943) m 1896 Edith May Hussey (1874-1940) m2. 1914 Nancy Lavina Wildes (1868-1951)

1860 Census
Saco, York, Maine
Lorenzo was a fisherman.  He and his wife Mariann had their first two children, Samuel (1857) and Alonzo (1859) while living near Saco, Maine.

1870 Census
Lorenzo (42) is still listed as a fisherman.  He's got a wife Miriam (41), five kids, and a mother-in-law in the house.  Thomas (1861), Marietta (1864), Abby (1867) had joined their family.  They were taking care of Mariann Lamphear (age 64).  They owned their house, valued around $500, and $300 worth of personal effects.  (Mariann had an estate worth $1000)

Miriam F Lampher

1880 Census
Biddeford
Lorenzo (51) was a fisherman and Miriam (51) ran a large household.  Alonzo and Thomas were employed as laborers, while , Marietta, Abby and Willie L (1871) were still at school.  Miriam Lamphear (age 79) (the mother-in-law) was living with them as well. 

1900 Census
Biddeford Maine
Lorenzo and Miriam lived in Biddeford, with Lorenzo doing some farming.  Lorenzo owned the farm and house, free and clear.  After bearing 6 children and raising 6 children to adulthood, only Alonzo (divorced, had married 14 years prior) still lived at home, working as a farm hand.

Lorenzo died four years later of tongue cancer, on 27 November, 1904 at the age of 76, 5 months, 17 days.  He was living on Pool Road in Biddeford.  Primarily he was a fisherman.

Miriam continued living a couple of decades.

Her daughter Abbie married a Augustus V.  Gookin in 1887 in Biddeford, then Roswell D. Flood in 1896 in Boston.  It was with Roswell and Abbie that Miriam lived in 1910 (on their farm).  Abbie had a daughter named Marietta Miriam Flood (Miriam's Granddaughter).

In 1920, she was living in Biddeford in the household of her granddaughter's husband, Linwood C Thomas and Abbie L (Flood) Thomas.  Abbie was working as a restaurant keeper.  She must have been separated from Roswell, because he doesn't show up on the census, and he died three years later in 1923.


More about Biddeford Pool:
Old Canoe relic
Miriam's spoon
and spoons and spoons
Gleanings from the Sea, by Joseph W Smith

Miriam Mitchell's recollection:

Biddeford Pool's Wood Island Light, from here

Early postcard of fishermen at Biddeford.

Samuel Cook and Judith Snowden (couple 16)

[Jen's maternal GGGGrandparents]
[Madelyn Hall > Judith Sprague > Nancy Cook > couple 16]

Samuel Cook
BIRTH: 1826, of Sackville,, New Brunswick, Canada
DEATH: about 1875

Judith Snowden
BIRTH: 26 JUL 1828, Wood Point, N. B., Canada
DEATH: 14 FEB 1917, West Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada

Samuel Cook
Other records corroborate that Samuel Cook was born to Robert (1785-1860) and Elizabeth Cook (1790-1862) in Sackville, New Brunswick.   Some researchers suspect that Robert Cook was from Tyrone Ireland. With the 1851 Census (age 23), he was still living in Sackville, in the household of Judith Snowden's parents (Valentine (45) and Mary (42)) working for them.  (On another note, Samuel was born on PEI according to Mary's death record, which was probably incorrect.)

from Panoramio.

Westcock and Wood Point are small communities on the outskirts of Sackville, New Brunswick.  Sackville is about a five minute drive to the Nova Scotia border, at the northern end of the Bay of Fundy.

Tantramar Marsh, Westcock, NB from here.

{Siblings unknown}

Judith Snowdon
Judith Snowden was born in 1828 in Woodpoint to Valentine Snowdon (1804-1877) and Mary King (1800-1881), who were married in Westcock, Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada.

Siblings of Judith
1. Sarah (1824-1888)
2. William H (1826-1894) m 1856 Emily Mcquinn (1838-1918)
3. Judith (1828-1917) m. 1852 Samuel Cook (1826-1881)
4. Amos (1830-??) m. 1861 Charlotte Ruth Towers (1841-1879)
5. Mary (1834-??) m. 1854 Seth Tower (1836-??)
6. James V (1836-??) m1. 1856 Cynthia (1836-??) m2. Nellie (1848-??)
7. Charles (1837-1854)
8. Benjamin (1843-1879) m 1866 Mary Ann MacKenzie (1845-1925)
9. David Messenger (1845-1901) m. 1873 Julia A Maxwell (1851-1927)
10 Cynthia Caroline (1846-??) m 1866 Robert McKay (1846-1921)
11. Emma (1849-1933) m. 1865 Chipman Richardson (1845-1929)
12. Hubert (1856-??)
13. Roscoe (1864-??)


Life together


 Samuel Cook (1826-1871) and Judith Snowden (1828-1917) were married in 1852 in Sackville, Westmorland, New Brunswick, and had 11 children.  Nancy was among the youngest.  Judith traveled twice to the US with Frances (Fanny) Patterson, first in 1849 from Cumberland, then again immigrated in 1851 aboard the Schooner Britain, 23 years old, listed as a milliner (hat-maker), with the intention to become an inhabitant of the United States.

By 1861, Samuel was 35, living at the head of his household.  He was a Presbyterian.  Judith Cook is a Baptist!

The 1871 Census doesn't include Samuel and Judith (45) in the same electronic record.  On this record, Judith is Church of England, in Sackville.  On his own record Samuel was 43, married, and still living in Sackville.  Samuel died young sometime between 1874 and 1881, perhaps after the birth of his daughter Barbara (b. 1875, unsourced link in tree).
 
As of the 1881 Census, Judith (55, widow) is taking care of her children.  The family were Presbyterians.

St Anne's Anglican Church, West Sackville.

St. Anne's, from here

1891, Judith is widowed, Church of England, still in Sackville.
1901, Judith is widowed, Church of England, living with son William, Charles B, in NB. Charles's wife Susan had passed away in 1899, leaving him with five kids (Mary J, Lenna, Samuel Andrew, Ada, Hatty S)
1911, Judith is widowed (83!), living with William and Charles' kids Ada, Hattie, Andrew (but not Charles)

Samuel and Judith's Children
1. Mary Jane (1853-1921) m 1876 Charles Sterling (1857-1932) ('61C, death record gives parents Samuel Cook of PEI and Judette Snowden of Woodpoint)
2. James "Valentine" (1854-??) m 1874 Anne M Carter (1857-??) ('71C,'81C)
3. Elizabeth "Bessie" Betsy/Bessie J (1856-1923) m William Sidney Duncan (1860-1923) ('71C,'81C)Robert (1857-1935) ('71C,'81C)
4. Robert Hazen (1857-1935) m 1875 Lucy Ann Duncan (1857-1943) ('81C)
5. Amos (1859-??)  ('71C,'81C)
6. William (1862-1934) ('71C,'81C)
7. Stephen Robie (1863-1949) m 1889 Mary Patchell McKay (1872-1949) ('81C)8. Charles Bradford (1865-1931) m 1889 Susan Hayes (1862-1899) ('71C,'81C)
9. Nancy (1868-1948) m 1887 Lafayette Sprague (1864-1948) ('81C)
10. Draxanna (1872-1934) m. 1893 Harry Compton Green (1866-1934) ('81C)
11. Barbara (1875-1881)

On Sackville
(From Wikipedia) Historically home to two foundries manufacturing stoves and furnaces, the economy is now driven by the university and tourism.

From here, "Sackville Township held its first meeting on 20 July 1762, and first steps were taken towards establishing municipal government."

Great writeup. Excerpt: "By the turn of the century Sackville was booming. The population approached 2,000 when the town was incorporated in 1903. During this time most of the buildings now comprising the town’s core were constructed."
 
Heritage Trust website.  (Check out the newsletters)
 

United Church, Sackville, from here.

Town History, for sale, 1934 version by WC Milner, text only version available here and an overview here.
 And here for 1955 version by William Cochrane Milner.

The Tantramar marshes are addressed here.

Walking Tour guide pdf.
Wood Point quarries made grind stones for farm tools.

At the Crossroads: A History of Sackville, by William B. Hamilton

On the children:
Valentine married Annie M. Carter in 1882 in Amherst Nova Scotia.

Betsey ("Bessie Donkin") (16 Oct 1856- 13 June 1923), she lived in the City of St. John at 137 Metcalf Street.  She died a widow by cancer of the liver, likely 2-3 years.  Her daughter Annie Ferris was the informant.  She was buried at Cedar Hill Cemetery, St. John.


Other family records indicate a Mary Sterling was his daughter (1854-1921), who racially identified as Irish.  She was married, most recently worked as a housekeeper, and died of Pulmonary Tuberculosis, with a secondary factor of old age.  Her son Hiram was the informant. (Samuel Cook and Judette Snowden?)

Stephen R Cook, a Methodist occupied as a sailor, married Mary Mackay ("spinster"), in Portland New Brunswick in 1889.

Robert lived at the British Settlement, Westmoreland, NB (13 Apr 1858-11 Sep 1935), and was married to Lucy Duncan (1883) in Amherst, Nova Scotia.  He was a farmer who worked for 55 years, finally retiring in 1929.  His son Roderick was the informant of his death.  He died of a heart attack ("myocardial failure").

William died single (1860- 22 Oct 1934), of pulmonary tuberculosis which he had for the last two years of life.  He worked as a cook aboard sailing ships, and apart from his time at sea, considered himself a life resident of West Sackville.  His neice, Mrs. Carl Estabrooks was the informant.

Charles married Susan Hayes in 1889, at which time he resided at Sackville Westcock.  He worked as a Farmer, and identified as Catholic.  His bride, Susan, was born in Memiamcook, but also resided in Sackville.   She was a spinster, also Catholic.  They were married at St. Joseph's College, Memiamcook.
later died as a widower spending his last 7 weeks under a doctor's care in Moncton at Hotel Dieu De L'aassumption, though he resided in West Sackville.  (12 Feb 1863- 26 Mar 1931).  He worked as a mason.  He died of stomach cancer.  His son Samuel Cook of 25 O'Brien, Moncton, NB was the  informant.

Annie Drax lived until (20 Sep 1872-- Feb 2, 1934.  She Last lived at 233 Main Street, St. John New Brunswick.  She was married to Harry C Green, and lived to the age of 61, and died of general debility of lung (Brochiolasis).

Charles Sprague and Mary Ann McKenzie (couple 15)

[Jen's maternal GGGGrandparents]
[Madelyn Hall > Judith Sprague > Lafeyett Sprague > couple 15]

Charles E Sprague
BIRTH: 26 June 1826, Grand Manan, Charlotte, New Brunswick, Canada
DEATH: 8 July 1914, Milbridge, Washington, Maine, United States

Mary Ann McKenzie
BIRTH: 14 August 1832, Franklin, Hancock, Maine, United States
DEATH: 9 Aug 1883, Milbridge, Washington, Maine

Charles E Sprague

Swallowtwail Light, Grand Manan, New Brunswick

 Charles E Sprague was born to John W Sprague, Jr, and Mary Morse, toward the tail end of perhaps 18 children on the island of Grand Manan, New Brunswick.  (Alternately at St John, NB, per Lafayette's birth record).

Grand Manan Herring Fishing Sheds

From Wikipedia: "The actual boundary and ownership of local islands in Passamaquoddy Bay was not settled until 1817, when the United States gave up its claim to Grand Manan and the surrounding islands.  By 1832, the island had become a destination for those seeking prosperity and privacy. Schools were established by the Anglican Church. While neighbouring islands along the American coast to Boston relied on whaling, Grand Manan established a reputation for fishing and shipbuilding. The early 19th Century saw the harvesting of hackmatack, birch and oak and a
burgeoning shipbuilding community. Population on the island grew to include many fine carpenters, and Grand Manan became known for its accomplished maritime craftsmen."


Mary Ann McKenzie
Mary Ann's parents are unclear (perhaps McCaleb, McKenzie, or Joy), but there seems to be reminders that she was born in either Cherryfield or Franklin, Maine in 1832.  It is unclear, as the documentation is not consistent through the years (see here for further discussion).  Her son William's death certificate says she was born in Cherryfield.  Lafayette's birth record records Franklin, ME as her birth place.  Regardless, Mary Ann and Charles had in common their connection to Charlotte county, New Brunswick.

Possible Siblings
1.  Mary Ann McKenzie (1832-1883) m 1848 Charles E Sprague (1826-1914)
2. Lucy A McKenzie (1838-??)
3. Alexander McKenzie (1839-??)
4. James McKenzie (1842-??)
5. Elizabeth McKenzie (1843-??)
6. Elizabeth McKenzie (1845-??) m 1865 Charles Murray (1832-1894)
7. William H McKenzie (1850-??)


Life Together
At age 22, Charles married Mary Ann McKenzie, who was 16.  Together, they subsequently had 10 children.

In 1850, Charles (23) is listed as a sailor, with his wife, Mary A (17), and they lived in the household of sea captain Moses Thompson and his wife Achsa.  Next door to Jason and Eliza D Strout in Milbridge, Maine.

They had the following children:
1. Abigail S (1851-1869)  (C'60) died at age 18.
2. William Edwin (1852-1909) (C'60, C'70) m 1876 Clementina Bracy (1860-1950)  A ship carpenter (per death record.)
3. Hollis "Woodbury" (1854-??) (C'60,C'70, C'80, sailor)
4. Frank?? (1856-1867) (don't see any justification, but an unlinked burial at Evergreen) died at age 11
5. Elvira W (1858-1903)  (C'70) m. 1879 Nelson R Williams (1857-after 1940)
6. James I (1859-bef1870) (C'60) presumed died before 1870
7. Caroline B (1861-1920) (C'70) m. 1880 Joseph Tilden Williams (1853-1913)
8. Charles F (1863-aft.1920) (C'80) m. 1891 Mary Ellen Staples (1871-1898)
9. Lafayette (1864-1948) (C'70, C'80) m 1887 Nancy Cook (1868-1948)
10. Minnie (1868-1868) (death record, died at 4 months)

The 1860 Census shows Charles (33) and family in Milbridge, Maine.

In 1870, Charles is 43, listed as a laborer owning $400 worth of real-estate.

READ MORE ABOUT MAINE Village life.
More on family life in Early America.

In 1880, Charles is 53, listed as a laborer in Milbridge.  He is living in the same stretch of road as Reuben and Ephraim Sprague, Edwin McKenney, Edwin Sprague (his son). Mary Ann (47) still has Woodbury (25), Lafayette (17), and Charles F (7) at home.

Mary Ann passed away in 1883 at the age of 51, leaving six kids.  Their youngest, Charles F was raised primarily by his father, Charles.  The other children apart from Lafayette were already married, but he was 19 at the time and fairly independent.

In 1900, Charles, a 73 year old widower, is living with son Charles F (27), also widowed, and grandson Whitney (7), living next door to son Lafayette and his large family.  Charles is still taking odd-jobs, working as a day laborer, and Charles F works as a laborer in the sardine factory while Whitney is at school.

In 1910, Charles (83) is living with his daughter Caroline B (48) and Tilden (56) Williams in Fairfield, Maine.  They had been married for 30 years, and their one child, Mildred (18) was at home.  While Tilden is a carpenter, Charles is STILL listed as working odd jobs as a laborer!

Otis S Strout and Eliza S Joy (couple 14)

[Jen's maternal GGGGrandparents]
[Madelyn Hall > Orin Otis Hall > Mary Ellen Strout > couple 14]

Otis Smith Strout
BIRTH: 16 Apr 1818, Harrington, Washington, Maine, United states
DEATH: 25 Jan 1892, Milbridge, Washington, Maine, United States


Eliza S Joy
BIRTH: 15 Dec 1828, Addison, Washington, Maine, United States
DEATH:18 Aug 1890, Milbridge, Washington, Maine, United States

Lupine on the road between Harrington and Addison.  from here.

Otis Strout
Otis Smith Strout was born in 1818 to Isaac Strout and Abigail Joy, both of whom were born in Harrington, ME and died in Milbridge Maine.  They were married in 1809 in Harrington, and had a large  number of kids, most likely 15.  Otis was most likely the third in that lineup.

1. Susan  (1813-1880)
2. Isabelle (1817-1903) m. 1832 John Babbage (1810-1870)
3. Otis Smith (1818-1892) m. 1848 Eliza S Joy (1828-1890)
4. Hannah J (1820-1898) m. 1848 Ambrose Snow Strout (1821-1877)
5. Samuel (1823-1909)
6. Capt Nehemiah (1825-1880) m. 1856 Sarah E Preble (1840-??)
7. David Alexander (1827-1872) m. 1848 Lydia M Walls (1826-1864)
8. Almira D (1828-1872) m. 1858 Joel G Hinkley (1833-1921)
9. Benjamin F (1830-??) m. 1848 Lydia Walls (perhaps an error??)
10. William N (1832-1856) m. 1849 Martha Ann Lowe (1836-1885)
11. Mirk (1834-??)
12. Merrill (1835-??)
13. female (1836-??)
14. Daniel Joy (1838-??) m. 1860 Susan Jane Preble (1840-1930)
15. Isaac (1840-??)


Eliza S Joy

Beriah Joy and Phebe Cox

Born to Beriah Smith Joy (1792-1871) and Phebe Cox (1797-1870) 

Eliza S Joy (1828-1890) of Addison, ME (village next door) 
1. Mary A (1820-1863) m. 1844 George A Carver (1819-1872)
2. Joanna Joy (1822-1883) m. 1845 Arthur Brown (1820-1851) (check on this)
3. daughter (1825-1830/39)
4. Eliza S (1828-1890) m. 1848 Otis Smith Strout (1818-1892)
5. Naomi (1830-1850/59)
6. Eunice Wallace (1832-1920) m. 1854 Seth Dyer Jr (1834-1915)
7. Darius Dickens (1834-1860)
8. David Beriah (1837-1912) m. 1857 Rebecca Drisko Leighton (1840-1913)

Life Together
Otis married Eliza on 5 August, 1848 (registered in Washington County, probably in Milbridge.) and had 7 children.  They lived in a part of Milbridge that was almost all Strouts.


1. Gleason C (1849-1906) m1. 1879 Abigail Ann Carver (1856-1887) m2. Emma W Burke (1869-1927)
2. Augusta Jane (1852-1915) m1 1885 John J Robinson (1817-1888), m2. Harlan P Allen (1844-??) m3. 1911 Darius D Sprague (1836-1913)
3. Everett Bucknam (1856-1892) m. 1880 Abigail S Pinkham (1860-1927)
4. Herbert O (1859-??) m. 1880 Arvilla M Strout (1864-1892)
5. Mary Ella (1862-1914) m 1880 Nathan Pulsifer Hall (1847-1923)
6. Benjamin Franklin (1864-1922) worked as hired man for Charles Grace.
7. Phoebe Ann (1872-1950) m. 1897 Forest Griffin (1872-1956)

1850 Census
Otis is listed as a sailor, with an estate worth $200.  They live next door to Isaac and his siblings Susan, Samuel, Nehemiah, and Benjamin F., and to the other side there or additional Strouts (Ambrose, Elizabeth, Charles, Erastus, etc.)

Aerial view of Milbridge, 2011, from here.

1860 Census
More kids, still living in Milbridge.

In 1863, he registered with the Civil War registry as 42 (and would have been married at the time) which exempts him from service (over 35, married).

1870 Census
By 1870, Otis was 50, and he left the firsherman trade.  He is listed as a farmer, with $600 in real estate and $200 personal effects.   Their older son Gleason had gone to work as a seaman, though.

1880 Census
Otis (61) is still farming, and their children except for Gleason are still at home with Eliza S (53).  Gleason (31) is next door with his wife Abba (24).   He is still a sailor.  Also in the household are Ann (8), initially listed as a granddaughter, but perhaps struck from the record, and the birth record shows Phoebe Ann is Otis and Eliza's daughter.

This span of having children over 23 years was not atypical.  In 1880, Otis (60) and Eliza (53) Strout had five kids and a niece at home in Milbridge.  Otis was a farmer.  Two of their children, Everett and Herbert were Sailors.

When Eliza died in 1890, and Otis died in 1892 (of LaGrippe: Spanish influenza, more about that here), they were buried in a family cemetery, known as the Otis Strout Family Cemetery. Also in that plot are Abigail Joy and Isaac Strout, Otis's parents, and Joseph Strout (1719-??).  I believe it's located here on Back Bay Road, Milbridge.

A bit about historical farming in Maine:

THE ANNUAL WORK CYCLE FOR MAINE FARMERS – A month by month activity guide presented by David C. Smith of UM. This is based on a study of diaries from 1765 to 1930. (note: this cycle represents all Maine and variations for local conditions are expected)

January – Cut wood for home and for sale
February – Continue cutting wood and start hauling it
March – Continue woods work and make maple syrup
April – Plow and plant early crops, prune and graft orchards
May – Plant, then shear the sheep
June – Hoe and cultivate crops, cut posts and rails and erect fencing
July – Hay
August – Continue haying, harvest wheat and rye
September – Harvest potatoes and apples, start making cider
October – Harvest corn and corn stalks, turnips, pumpkins and cabbage
November – Plow
December – Cut wood, clear new land

Year-round on rainy days – Walk fences and make needed repairs, work on the woodpile. Homes used between 10 and 20 cords of wood annually. Manufacturing this wood was a huge task before crosscut saws and bucksaws were used.
And a map of Washington County. (Milbridge is the yellow town on the Atlantic Coast, bottom of the map):

Orrin O Hall and Abigail F Willey (couple 13)

[Jen's maternal GGGGrandparents]
[Madelyn Hall > Orin Otis Hall > Nathan Pulsifer Hall > couple 13]

Orrin Otis Hall
BIRTH:10 Dec 1806, Columbia, Washington, Maine, United States
DEATH: 2 Jan 1885, Columbia, Washington, Maine, United States

Abigail F Willey
BIRTH: 6 Jan 1810, Of Columbia, Washington, Maine, United States
DEATH: 21 November 1882, Columbia, Washington, Maine, United States

Orrin Otis Hall
Orrin Otis Hall was born, perhaps the oldest of four children to John J Hall (1784-1836) and Elizabeth Colson (1786-1819).   His mother was 20 when he was born, and his father was 22.

{Multiple recorded Spouses need to be validated!  M2 and M3 seem a little fishy}
Siblings via John J Hall and Elizabeth Colson (1786-1819)  abt 1804
1. Orrin Otis Hall (1806-1885) m 1829 Abigail F Willey (1810-1882)
2. Sophronia Hall (1810-1870) m1 abt 1830 John Jordan Willey (1807-1850) m2 1858 Job Smith (??-??)
3. Rufus Hall (1812-1870) m 1857 Mary Abigail Hurd (1831-1905)
4. Rosilla Hall (1814-1850) m 1841 Barnabas Smith (1794-1881)

Siblings via John J Hall and Dorcas Fernald Willey (1797-1839) m 1820
Sarah Hall (1821-1838)
Elizabeth Hall (1823-1856) m 1845 Oliver Leighton (1819-1908)
Captain Jordan Willey Hall (1827-1889) m 1856 Hannah Day (1838-1917)
Phidelia Hall (1829-1911) m 1850 Asa T Morse (1825-1886)


Siblings via John J Hall (1784-1836) and Mary Nash Libby (1816-1898) m 1832
Tristram Redman Hall (1832-1907) m 1851 Susan S Cole (1834-1914)
Rufus Hall (1833-??) m 1857 Mary A Whitney (1836-??)
Dorcas Willey Hall (1836-1925) m 1850 Lewis R Leighton (1829-1893)


They were married in Columbia Maine, where they lived and worked.  The Halls seem to have moved to Millbridge for the birth of their daughter Sophronia in 1810, and were in Harrington for the births of Rufus (1812) and Rosilla (1814).

Blueberry fields in Fall from here

Columbia between 1800 and 2000 has typically had about 500 citizens, though there was a burst of population in the 1850s and 1860s when the population burgeoned to over 1000.  Columbia was formed from tracts 12 and 13 in 1796, until Columbia Falls split in 1863.

From Wikipedia:  "Blueberries are one of only three fruits native to this area, the others being cranberries and grapes. Native Americans knew that burning the fields in spring helped the crop, and they dried blueberries for pemmican, as well. During the Civil War, berries were hand-picked, hand-canned and soldered for shipping to the Union Army. Berries were also hand picked (for 2 cents a quart) and shipped by schooner in one quart wooden firkins to Boston (the trip took 2½ days)."
Columbia, from the Maine Encyclopedia.

Wild Blueberry Land, Columbia Falls, Maine, from here. 

Abigail F Willey
Abigail's parents, Ichabod Willey (1770-1820) and Sarah Fernald (1773-1820) were married in Cherryfield, Washington County, though Sarah was born in Gouldsboro, Hancock County.  All of these places are "Down East", beyond Ellsworth and Mt Desert Island.  Abigail is listed as 8th of 9 children.

Siblings
1. Abraham  (1793-1830) m 1819 Sibyl Foster White (1799-1889)
2. Sarah  (1795-1862) m. 1817 Major Dinsmore (1796-1879)
3. Dorcas Fernald (1797-1839) m John J Hall (1784-1836)
4. Lydia Fernald (1799-1880)- m. 1821 Robert Leighton Pinkman (1787-1867)
5. Ichabod  3rd (1802-1804)
6. Andrew  (1805-1807)
7. John Jordan (1807-1850) m abt 1830 Sophronia Hall (1810-1870)
8. Abigail F (1810-1882) m. 1829 Orrin Otis Hall (1806-1885)
9. Sabin P (1814-1882) m. 1844 Catherine B Strout (1819-??)



Life Together
When Orrin O. was 23, he married Abigail F. Willey, who was also from Columbia.


Children of Orrin Otis Hall and Abigail Willey

Lumber on the Naraguagas, Cherryfield, ME.

1. Abraham S (1829-1907) m1. 1847 Bathsheba Randall (1827-??)  m2. 1851 Lucy P Carter (1830-1898) A ship carpenter.
2. Zemro Small (1834-1910)  m1. 1854 Hannah Russells (1836-??) m2. 1866 Rosilla Martha Buzzell (1848-1935)
3. Abigail H (1837-1914) (C'60) m. 1857 Jeremiah L Randall (1837-1912)
4. Warren L (1841-1864) (C'60) died in Civil War at Siege at Petersburg
5. Sophronia W (1845-1881)  (C'60) m. 1869 Vandeluer Low (1835-1920) died at 36.
6. Harriet A (1845-1933) (C'60) m. 1864 George S Anderson (1849-1921)
7. Nathan Pulsifer (1847-1923) (C'60) m1. 1867 Athlona Adelia Low (1843-1879) m2. 1880 Mary Ella Strout (1862-1914)
8. Irene H (1853-1923) (C'60) m1. 1870 William W Walsh (1827-1907) m2 1886 William Philander Frye (1865-1948)
9. John J (1855-1882) (C'60) m 1876 Harriet A Allen (1858-1880)


1850
 Orrin (45), worked as a millman in 1850, with Abigail F (38) running the house, and his sons Abram W (19) and Zemro S (16) working alongside him at the mill.  The younger children, Abigail (14), Warren L (7), Harriet A H (5), Nathan P (3), and Sophronia W (infant) would have been a house full of activity.  Orrin's real estate value was $300, which could have been his house and small farm.
Abigail (14) was the only child in the house to attend school that year.

1860
By 1860, some of the children had moved out.  Orrin (54) and Abigail  (47) were still in Columbia, with their daughter Abby (22) at home, along with Warren L (17), Harriet A (14) Nathan P (13), Sophronia W (11), and two additions since the last Census, Irene N (8) and John J (5)

On June 18, 1864, their son Private Warren L died as a result of the siege at Petersburg at age 22 years, 10 months.  He was a member of Company H, Regiment 1, Maine Heavy artillery.  His body was buried at the Hall-Randall Private Cemetery in Columbia, ME.

1870
After another 10 years, Orrin (64) was working as a laborer, with his real estate valued at $236 and personal effects at $121.  Abigail (57) was keeping house with just Irene (18) and John (15) at home.  They are still listed as living between the Frye's and the Randalls.

1880
Abigail (67) and Orrin (74) lived long lived in Columbia in 1880, maintaining their house and doing some farming.  Next door to them was John J Hall, working as a carpenter (age 24) and his wife Hattie (22) and their baby Freddy A.

Abbie F. Hall died on 21 November 1882 in Columbia, and was buried in the Hall-Randall Private Cemetery.  There may have been a sickness in the house, because John J died a couple of weeks later on December 5, 1882.

Orrin continued to live a few years until June 2, 1885, and was buried in the same cemetery.

Of their 9 kids, all of them lived to adulthood, though Warren died in the Civil War, and John J died at age 27 a couple weeks after his mother died.  All of the children except Warren had married and had children.

Maine, Historical Context

Norway, Androscoggin

Maps online:

Mechanics Falls, Poland, Minot

One write-up here, from 1889.
1900: 1600 people

http://www.mechanicfalls.govoffice.com/vertical/Sites/%7B95B71D9E-3D80-403F-8086-C2CFADEB5CA9%7D/uploads/History_of_Mechanic_Falls.jpg

http://www.mechanicfalls.govoffice.com/vertical/sites/%7B95B71D9E-3D80-403F-8086-C2CFADEB5CA9%7D/uploads/McFallsSurrounding_Steep_Slopes_11x17.pdf Map of Maine, populated regions as of 1776, 1800, and 1820.