Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1875-03-09
Early Bethel Families.
GROVER.

Ia the annals % B.lAsi, no narae la. been more
VF0uaInsBt than The one which place % the head
a. tAs Ariols. No family has given bo!og heed 10
tLs commandment 10 bs fruitful aud multiply,
sud this name has furnished more emlgrant, 70
other iowas both In and out Of the state than any
other family In Bethel. Ia physical developm
the early Grover. In Bethel W ere noble specimens
Of the traditional men and women Of New Eng
land. In stature they were above the average,
aud were possessed OF great powers Of endurance.
This family has also furnished many examples Of
intellectual strength. They have resided almost
exclusively In the west part OF the town, where
they have constituted 10 small proportion Of tue
population, aud on the annual voting and tax lists,
no name in town has ever outIumoered them.
The Grover family /. one OF the old families OF
New England. Previous 70 1850 several famille,
bearing the name resided In salem, Maiden and
Charlestown, and their names very frequently
appear In the records Of the Colony Of the Nassa
ehuseits Bay. We dad among them the Christian
names of John, Andrew, James and Eli al, names
which have been handed down through seven or
eight generations vi Growers aud are s,ill IN use
among them.
THOMAS Grover. born In En.land, Was IN
CharleIown Maiden side 10 1912, where by wife
Eliza, he LGsdrHs, born April :, 1912, EH.a born
Dec. IL, lC50: THOMAS, JR., born April !, 1853 !,
and several who died young. The father died
Oct. 2s. 1901, aud his wife and son Lazarus were
appointed administrators. The widow subse
qaently married Philip Atwood.
THOMAS, JR. married Sarah, dau. hIsr u John
Chadwick Of Maiden, and resided IL tha. town.
HIS children were Thomas born los; Sarah, born
Nov lGio; ANDREW. born Oct lglJ. And Ephrdim
born 1873.
Ga Nov. 18th, 1904, these three brothers, viz
Thomas, Andrew aud Ephraim, all OF WHOM lad
Oeeu married, bought land in what was a. en- known
IS West Purchase, IN the town Of Taunton in
Bristol County. Ia l,lO the West Purchase was
incorporated into a town by the name OF Norton.
That part Of the town settled by the Growers
in The North Patish Of Notion, and IN 100 this
Parish was incorpOrat-dby the name Of Mansfield.
The Grover brothers built their houses about ~
rods apart and in such manner 10 marx thr
angle; OF an e4uilateral triangle. They were On
the road leading 10 Mansdeld Centre. From these
three bro hers sprang numerous posterity. sew
eral families Of their descendants still reside in
Mansfield, and most OF the belong 10 the Society
OF friends.
Thomas, the oldest OF the three brothers. mar.
children born in Maiden, and three more, one OF
whom was named Rolad, who died young, were
born In Norton.
ANDREW, the second brother, was married 10
lG9' to Mary -, aud her three children we're
born in Maiden, viz: john, JAMES and Mary, and
seven in Norton. lie died In l15l
Ephraim, who was for many rcars deacon OF
the North Parish church in Norton, married Mary
Pratt OF Maiden, in l7oo and they had touI children,
all born in Norton. lie he'd Feb Is, 1875.
or the sons Of ANDREW, John, born Nov. 2j,
1913, married Hannah skinner, and had John,
MarV, HdnnGh, Margaret, Tabethy MIrthG sud
Elisabeth. Mary was married 10 solomon skinner,
Jan. 10, l723.
JAMES born Sept. !, 1899 was married Nov. L.,
l126' by Joseph Avery. Esq to Sarah Austin, aud
their children were as follows JAMES, JR, born
August ID, 1873; Sarah, born May ,, 1882; JeRe.
didh, born May 3, 1924; Elisabeth and Abiqaa.
twins, born March %, l63s; John, born June 20,
1859. These are all the births recorded, but there
may nave been other children.
JAMEs,JR aud Sarah weIlman both OF Norton
were married April :, l15l Children James, born
March ~, lI55; John, Jedeiiah, Ell, born in i76S;
Elijah, bprn in 1893; Sally, born In 1885, OGre.
born in 1906, and Naomi, born in ITO.
Previous to l71i, James Grover had moved with
his family to Peckersheld (now Nelson when his
vile, Sally (wellman) died, aud about the wear
l1S6 he came TO Bethel The father did no, marry
again, but lived with one OF his sons. He wa. the
nrst deacon of the Congregational schurch in
Se'he'' which o'tce he dled tor more than hfreeu