2. Francis, born 1617; schoolmaster at Cam-
bridge. .Massachusetts; resided at London;
settled at Kerby Steven. Westmoreland, Eng-
land : died unmarried. 3. Timothy, mariner ;
died unmarried. 4. Tiieophilus, died aged
thirty-seven. 5. Ca])tain Samuel, captain of
an English man-of-war, and afterward of an
East Indiaman : died aged fortv-four. 6. Ann.
married Thomas Chatfield, of Guilford. Xew
Haven. 7. Mary, died Tuesday. May 19. 1629.
8. Charles, cai)tain of a ship in the Jamaica
trade ; died aged forty-nine. 9. Xeophytus,
died aged about twenty.

(V) Rev. John (3) Higginson, son of Rev.
Francis Higginson, was born at Claybrooke,
England. .August 6, 1616, and died at Salem,
Massachusetts. December 9. 1708. He became
a member of his father's church at the age of
thirteen, and when he was but twenty was
sent at the head of a commission with Lieu-
tenant Edward Gibbons and Cutshamekin,
Sagamore of Massachusetts, to wait on Can-
onicus. chief of the Xarragansetts. concerning
the murder of John ( )ldham while on a trad-
ing voyage to Block Island : and at twenty-
one was appointed scribe of the Cambridge
Assembly, to take down its i)roceedings in
shorthand — a report unfortunately lost. He
was afterward teacher of the grammar .school
at Hartford, and cha])lain <if tlie fort at Say-
brook. Connecticut, where he tonk j)art in the
defence conducted by the celebrated Lion
(jardiner. He turned to the study of divinity
and was for some time assistant to Rev. Henry
Whitfield, at Guilford, Connecticut. The old
stone parsonage there, the oldest house stand-
ing in the original limits of the L'nited .States,
was his home for a time, and in it his wedding
to the minister's daughter Sarah took place.
In 1659. after the death of his mother he de-
cided to return to England to settle her estate
and make his home there, but the vessel in
which he anrl his family embarked was driven
by a providential storm into Salem harbor.
But for this storm the great contributions that
Higginson and his distinguished descendants
have made to .American history would be want-
ing. He was persuaded at .Salem to take charge
of the church his father founded there thirty
years before, and was ordained in August,
1660. For a period of forty-eight years he



was minister at Salem, and during nuich of
that time the foremo.st clergyman of the Mass-
achusetts Bay Colony. In his old age he bore
the title of 'Xestor of the Xew England
Clergy."

John Higginson was undoubtedly in sym-
pathy with the prevalent hostility to the
Quakers. "But his name is not identified, I
believe," WTites Colonel T. W. Higginson,
"with any of the judicial cruelties aimed at
these persecuted people ; though it is probable
that he fully ajjproved the action of the county
court when it sentenced Thomas Maule, known
to the readers of Hawthorne's 'House of the
Seven Gables,' to be whipped ten stripes for
saying that 'Mr. Higginson ])rcached lies, and
his doctrine was the doctrine of devils.' But
he was a rational op])onent of the witchcraft
])crsccutions. even in his old age. 1 fe was a
witness in favor of (}oody F.uckley. charged
with witchcraft, and this involved him in such
reproach among the fanatics that his own
daughter .Anna, wife of Cai)tain William Holli-
ver of (iloucester. was arrested as a witch and
thrown into the jail at Salem."

He wrote the preface to Cotton Mather's
".Magnalia." and says in it of himself. January
-5- 1697: "As for myself, having been, by
the mercy of God, now above sixty-eight years
in .\ew England, and served the l^ord and his
people, in my weak measure, sixty years in the
ministry of the gospel. I may now say in my
old age. I have seen all that the Lord hath
dnne f(]i his people in Xew England, and have
known the beginning and jirogress of these
churches unto this day, and having read over
much of this history. I cannot but in the love
and fear of the Lord bear witness to the truth
iif it " Judge Samuel Sewell was one of his
intimate friends, exchanged papers and books,
and when Higginson was ninety years old we
find him giving Sewell his support in the move-
ment against the slave trade and slavery, which,
it must be remembered, was the foundation of
the fortunes of many great families of Salem
and I'.oston. His funeral sermon was ))reached
by Cotton Mather, and at least two of the
printed cojjies have been preserved. The fol-
lowing list of the published works of Mr.
Higginson was comjiilerl by Colonel T. W.
Higginson: "The Cause of God and his Peo-
ple in Xew England," a sermon. May 2-^, 1663 ;
"Our Dying .Saviour's Legacy of Peace"
(1686) ; ".Address to the Reader of Xew Eng-
land .Memoriall" (1669); "Eiiistle Dedicatory
to Xew England's Duty" (1669) ; "Epistle to
the Reader of Modest Enquiry into the Nature



346



MASSACHUSETTS.



of Witchcraft" (1702); "Preface to Cotton
Mather's Winter Meditations" (1693); and
"A Testimony to the Order of the Gospel, in
the Churches of New England," (i/Oi). His
"Advice to His Children/' called his "Dying
Testimony," was apparently not published dur-
inf( his lifetime, but from manuscript left in
the hands of a descendant in the Essex Insti-
tute Collections, ii. p. 97.

"No character in our annals," says Upham,
"shines with a purer lustre." John Dunton,
the London bookseller, visited him in 1686,
when seventy, and says of him : "All men
look up to him as to a common father ; and old
age, for his sake, is a reverent thing. He is
eminent for all the graces that adorn a min-
ister. His very presence puts vice out of
countenance ; his conversation is a glimpse of
heaven." "He had been, in the words of the
Massachusetts Company's first letter to Endi-
cott, 'trained up in literature' at the grammar
school at Leicester, and was therefore recom-
mended for a medical education, but the inevit-
able influence of the time led him to the pro-
fession of his father, while he always retained
that breadth of intellectual interest which held
out so remarkable amidst many intellectual
vagaries, in the second generation of Massa-
chusetts Puritans." He was one of the first
men in the colony to urge the importance of
historical investigations.

He married (first) Sarah, daughter of Rev.
Henry Whitfield, of Guilford, Connecticut.
She <lied July 8, 1675, and he married (sec-
ond) Mary, born 1636, died March 9, 1708-9,
daughter of Rev. .Adam Pjlackman, of Strat-
ford, and widow of Joshua .Atwater, of New
Haven and P>oston. Children of first wife:
I. John, born 1646; mentioned below. 2.
Nathaniel, horn at Guilford. October 11, i'')52:
died in London, October 31. 1708; graduate of
Harvard, 1670; went to England, and was
with Lord Wharton about seven years, steward
and tutor to his children ; employed in the mint
of the Tower, 1681 ; went in company's ser-
vice to Fort St. George, East Indies, 1683 ;
secretary and member of council and after-
ward governor of factory at the fort : married,
ALiy, 1692, Elizabeth, daughter of John Rich-
ards : in 1700 returned witii his wife and chil-
dren to luigland. and was a London merchant.
3. Sarah, married Richard Wharton, of Bos-
ton. 4. Anna, married. October 4, 1682, Will-
iam Dolliver, of Gloucester. 5. Thomas,
served his time with a goldsmith in England ;
returned to .'Xmerica : sailed for .Arabia, and
was lost at sea. 6. Francis, born at .Salem,



June 9, 1660; went to his uncle Francis at
kerby Steven, who educated him at the uni-
versity ; died in London, 1684. 7. Henry, born
at Salem, December 18, 1661 ; educated as a
merchant : went to the Barbadoes as a factor,
and died there 1685.

(\T) Colonel John (4) Higginson, son of
Rev. John (3) Higginson, was born in Guil-
ford, Connecticut, in 1646, and died in Salem,
March 23, 1719, aged seventy-three years.
He was one of the foremost men of the town
in his time, a prominent merchant, and in the
affairs of colonial government. In addition
to his mercantile interests in Salem, he engaged
in the fisheries and carried on foreign trade.
He had an extensive correspondence with his
brother Nathaniel between the years 1692 and
1700. published by the Massachusetts His-
torical .Society. From a letter written in 1697
the following ([notation sets forth the condi-
tions prevailing in the town by reason of the
French and Indian war: "In the yeare 1689.
when this war first broke out. I had attained
a competent estate, being as much concerned
in the fishing trade as most of my neighbors;
but since yt time I have met with considerable
los.ses. Of sixty odd fishing ketches belonging
to this towne.. but about six are left. I believe
no Towne in this Province has suffered more
by this war yn Salem." Again, October 3,
1699, he writes: "In the late war all East
India goods were extremely dear. Best mus-
lin, 10 pounds a piece; pepper, 3s, nuts (nut-
megs) 1 8s. cloves 20s. mace 30s. lb... but they
are now fallen a quarter part ; china and lacker
wares will sell of a small quantity. Ambergrece
we often have from the West Indies. Some
musk, pearl, diamonds, beazor may sell well."
In 1674 he was appointed ensign of Captain
Gardner's company, and afterward became
lieutenant-colonel of militia. In 1708 he sent
a memf)rial to England setting forth to the
govenunent the necessity of conquering Can-
ada. In 1^)86 he is mentioned as a trustee in
a deed of .Salem lands from the Indians "as a
safeguard against encroachments of Userpa-
tion." In 1712 he was chosen one of a com-
mittee "to procure a suitable grammar school
master." He was deputy to the general court
in i68<); member of tiie governor's council
from 1700 until his death in 1719.

He married. October 9. 1672. Sarah, daugh-
ter of Thomas and Mary (Symmes) Savage,
of Boston. Children, born in Salem: i. Mary,
.September 27, 1673; married (first) .April 4,
1695, Thomas Gardner, Jr.: (second) April
25. 1699. Dr. Edward Weld, of Salem. 2.



MASSACHUSETTS.



347



John. August 20. 1675; mentioned below. 3.
Thomas. December 23, 1677, died September
18. 1678. 4. Xathaniel. .-^pril i, 1680, died
1720; married, April 23, 1702, Hannah Ger-
rish. 5. Sarah, June i, 1682, died August 5,
1699; marrieil. June 22, 1699, Nathaniel
Hathorne. 6. Elizabeth, October 13. 1684;
married, October 22, 1705, John Gerrish. 7.
Margaret. November 10, 1686, died June 18,
1688.

f\'n) John (5). son of Colonel John (4)
Higginson. was born in Salem. August 20, 1675,
and died tliere April 26. 1718. He was edu-
cated for a mercantile career, and the manage-
ment of his father's extensive business as a
merchant was for the most part in his hands.
For a number of years he was judge of the
court of common pleas of Essex county, with
his associate Corwin; but in 1702 Governor
Dudley made other appointments. In one of
his letters to Xathaniel, his father. Colonel
Higginson. says of his son John : "My eldest
.son John, whom I brought up at home, is very
capable of business, a very liopeful young man
as any in our town, sober and judicious * *
and has made good progress in the world ; has
built him a good house, has one fishing vessel;
a lieutenant of one of our military companies,
and register to the judge of probate for wills
and granting administrations for this county,
and well accepted in the place." The dwell-
ing house alluded to stood on the south side of
Essex street, between Rarton square and the
corner of Washington street.

John Higginson married, .September 11,
1695, Hannah Gardner, of Salem, who died
June 24, 1713, daughter of .Samuel Gardner.
He married (second) November 11, 1714,
Margaret .Sewall. born May 7, 1687, died
March, 1736, daughter of Stephen Sewall,
first register of probate in Essex county. Chil-
dren of first wife, born in Salein : i. Elizabeth,
June 28, 1696, died March 20, 1722-3: mar-
ried. October 20, 171 5, Rev. Benjamin Pres-
cott. 2. John, January 10, 1697-8, died July
15, 1744: graduate of Harvard 1717; register
of deeds for Essex county, 1725 ; married
(first) Ruth Roardman ; (second) Esther
Cabot. 3. Samuel. I'ebruary 5, 1699- 1700,
died SeptemlKT 23, 1702. 4. Sarah. February
13, 1702-3. died June 14. 1745; married De-
cember, 1732, Dr. John Cabot Jr. 5. Francis,
November 29, 1705, died same day. 6. Henry,
September 23, 1707. died December i, 1708.
Children of second wife: 7. Stephen, July 31,
1716. 8. Nathaniel, 1718. died 1719.

(\'HI) Stephen, son of John (5) Higgin-



son, was born in Salem, 1 July 31, 1716, and
died there October 12, 1761. He was a prom-
inent merchant and held many town offices ;
deputy to general court two years, and one of
the founders of the Salem Social Library in
T760. Manjiof the books for this library were
purchased by him in Boston. In 1810 the
books were bought by the founders of the
Salem .-\thenaeum. He married, April 22,
1743. Elizabeth Cabot, born March 8, 1710-11,
daughter of John and Anna (Orne) Cabot,
, Children, born in Salem: i. Stephen, Novem-
ber 28, 1743. 2. Sarah, January 14, 1745, died
May 5, 1772: married, January 3, 1767, John
Lowell. LL. D., who was api)ointcd judge of
the district court by President Washington.
3. John. April 30, 1746, died .'\ugust, 1750. 4.
I lenry, December 14, 1747, died in Boston,
October 4, 1790; master mariner ; deputy 1780-
81. 5. Deborah, July 24, 1750, died Septcm-
''^■'■- '/SS- 6. Deborah, January 6, 1754, died
December 14, 1820: married (first) .Stephen
Cabot; (second) Joseph Lee. 7. Elizabeth,
baptized May 2, 1756, died July. 1826; mar-
ried, I'\'bruary 22, 1774, George Cabot.

(IX) The Honorable Captain .Stephen (2)
Higginson, son of Stephen (i) Higginson, was
born in Salem, November 28, 1743, and died
November 22, 1828. He was a merchant with
an extensive business in both Salem and Bos-
ton. He made a visit to England just before
the revolution, and was called to the bar of
the Hf)use of Commons to answer cjuestions
as to the state of feeling in Massachusetts. He
was a member of the Continental Congress in
1782-83. and a firm supporter of Washington
and Adams. He was acting secretary of the
navy May 11, 1798, to June 22, 1798, and
was one of Governor James Bowdoin's most
active and resolute advisers in the suppression
of .Shay's Rebellion, going out as second in
command to supj^ress this insurrection. While
he was shipmaster he brought over a church
bell in 1772 for the North Church of Salem,
and later a bell for the East Church, which
then sold its old bell to Harvard College. In
the war of 1812 he suffered great losses. It
is said of him that he sustained with great
credit the reputation of an ancient and honor-
able family. He was the reputed author of
"The Writings of Laco," as published in the
Massachusetts Cciitiiicl in I-'ebruary and
March. 1789. These articles had for a motto:
"The liberty of the Press is essential to the
security of freedf)m in a state, it ought not
therefore be restrained in this Common-
wealth ;" and they are reprinted under the



348



MASSACHUSETTS.



modernized title, "Ten Chapters in the Life
of John Hancock," (New York, 1857).

He married (first) Susanna Cleveland, born
at Med ford, March i, 1741, died at Salem,
June 24, 1788, daughter of Aaron and Sus-
anna (Porter) Cleveland, granddaughter of
Aaron Cleveland, great-granddaughter of
Aaron, and great-great-granddaughter of the
immigrant, Moses Cleveland. She inherited
her mother's personal attractions, and was
celebrated alike for her beauty and her dignity
of mind and manners. The marriage license
signed by Governor Benning Wentworth, now
in the possession of Colonel T. W. Higginson,
is remarkable in that it authorizes all ordained
ministers of the (lospel "E.xcept one Browne"
to join the cou|)le in matrimony. Captain
Higginson married (second) Elizabeth Perkins,
of Boston, daughter of a merchant, Thomas
Perkins, of English birth. He married (third)
Sarah Perkins, sister of his second wife. Chil-
dren of first wife: i. John, born in Salem,
January 15, 1765. 2. Sarah, June 11, 1766,
died 1805: married Dudley .\tkins Tyng. 3.
Nathaniel, February 12, 1768, died 1794; mar-
ried Sarah Rhea. 4. Stephen, November 20,
1770, at Salem, died February 20, 1834; for
many years steward of Harvard College : mar-
ried (first) August, 1794, Martha Salisbury,
(second) Louisa Storrow ; father of Colonel
Thomas Wentworth Higginson. 5. Barbara
Cooper, June 15, 1774; married Samuel G.
Perkins. 6. Elizabeth, .Vugust 5, 1776; mar-
ried (first) Dudley A. Tyng. being his second
wife: (second) George Searle. 7. George,
July 19, 1779. at Boston; mentioned below.
8. Henry, born in Bo-ston, P'ebruary 5, 1781 ;
married. 1803, Nancy Gushing. 9. Susan
Cleveland, .April 20, 1783: married Francis
Dana Chaniiing. Child of second wife: 10.
James Perkins, mentioned below.

(X) George, son of Captain .Stephen Higgin-
son, was born in Boston, July 19. 1779. and
died in March, 18 1 2. He was a well-known
philanthropist, .'\mong the young men whom
lie helped to educate was John H. Sheppard,
.A. M.. who later became famous. Rev. Dr.
J. S. J. Gardner, on March 12, 1812, at Trin-
ity church, I'lOSton, ])rcached a sermon on the
death of ( ieorge Higginson, in which his char-
acter was ably drawn and his benevolence ex-
tolled. He married, in iSoo, Martha I'.abcock,
wiio married (second) his half-brother. James
Perkins Higginson. Cliildren: i. Martha
Babcock, born October 15, 1801, died 1833;
married Augustus .'\spinwall. 2. Susan Cleve-
land, born Se|)teniber 18, 1803, in London,



England. 3. George, born September 18, 1804;
mentioned below. 4. James Babcock. died in
I'.oston, May 26, 1855. 5. John, died young,
1822. 6. Sarah Rhea, died young.

(XI) George (2), son of George (i)
Higginson. was born in Boston, September 18,
1804, and died there April 27, 1889, aged
eighty-four. When a young man he went to
New York and engaged in the East India
trade, which failed, with Stephen N., his cousin.
Returning to Boston he founded the banking
house of Lee, Higginson & Company, which
has continued to the present time without
change of name. His original partner was
J. C. Lee, then of Salem, and subsequently
Colonel Henry Lee, a cousin of J. C. Lee, be-
came a partner. In 1874 Mr. Higginson with-
drew from the firm to devote himself to the
care of his property and to works of philan-
throphy. He was a director of the Calumet &
Hecla Mining Company, in which he had a
large interest, and in the Provident Institution
for Savings. During the civil war he was a
strong supporter of the L^nion, and a large
contributor to the sanitary fund. He married,
in P.oston, October 31, 1832, Mary Cabot Lee,
born August 16, 181 1, died .\ugu.st 26, 1849,
daughter of Henry and Mary (Jack.son) Lee.
Her father received the electoral votes of South
Carolina for vice-president at the second elec-
tion of .Andrew Jackson. Children, born in
New York City: i. George, August 6, 1833;
married Elizabeth ISarker. 2. Henry Lee, No-
vember 18, 1834: mentioned below. 3. James
Jackson, June" 19, 1836; married Margaret
^iracie. 4. Francis Lee, October 11, 1841 ;
mentioned below. 3. Mary Lee. September 5,
1838; married Samuel Parkman Blake.

"(XII) Major Henry Lee Higginson, son of
George (2) Higginson, was bnrn in New York
City, November 18, 1834. \\v received his
earlv education in Boston. I Ic entered Har-
vard College in 1 851, but did not complete his
course, leaving in 1852 before the end of his
freshman year to begin his business career as
a clerk in the office of Samuel & Edward
Austin, bankers, of Boston. .Afterward he
went aI)road and studied music at \'ienna and
dther Iuiroi)ean cities, and notwithstanding his
activity in business and finance in later years,
he has maintained his interest in musical
afl'airs. To his sui^jiort and initiative Boston
o\\ es much. 1 le was the prime mover in estab-
lishing and maintaining the P.oston Symphony
Orchestra, the best in the country. He entered
the I'nion army in the civil war, and at Aldie,
\irginia, in June, 1863, was severely wounded.



MASSACHUSKTTS.



349



lie held the rank of major in the First IVIassa-
chusetts Cavalry, and was brcvettcd lieutenant-
colonel. After the war he was admitted to
partnership in the banking firm of his father,
Lee, Higginson & Company. His enterprise
and sagacity helped in large measure to main-
tain the leadership of the firm in financial
circles. Major Higginson has been one of the
largest benefactors of Harvard I'niversity, in
which he has always shown great interest. He
gave to it the Soldiers' Field as a memorial to
the Harvard men who fought and died for the
Union. This great athletic field, on the bank
of Charles river, is one of the best in the world
for its purposes. On it the imposing stadium
has been built, where the football ancl baseball
games are played. Major Higginson was the
prime mover and donor of the 1 larvard Union,
for which a magnificent building was erected
near the college yard. He was given the hon-
orary degree of A. M. by Harvard in 1882;
LL. D. by Yale, in 1901. He is a fellow of
Harvard, and a member of the Massachusetts
Historical Society. Xo man enjoys a greater
degree of jiojiularity and honor among Har-
vard men. undergraduates as well as graduates,
than Major Higginson. In politics he is a
Republican, of large influence, though he has
never consented to accept public office. He is
a member of the Metropolitan and Knicker-
bocker Clubs of New York, the Kew England
Society of Xcw York City, and is a trustee of
the Carnegie Institution.

He married, in Cambridge, Massachusetts,
December 5. 1863, Ida Olympe Frederika
Agassiz, born at Carlsruhe, Grand Duchy of
Baden, .August 9, 1837. daughter of Professor
Jean Louis Rudolph and Cecile (Rraiin)
Agassiz. Major Higginson resides at 191
Commonwealth avenue. Boston. Children,
born in P.oston : i. Cecile Pauline, born Janu-
ary 5, 1870; died Augu.st 18, 1875. 2. Alex-
ander Henry, born April 2, 1876; graduate at
Harvard, class of 1898.

(XII ) Francis Lee Higginson, son of George
( 2 ) Higginson. was born in Boston. October 1 1,
1841. He married Cfirst) I-'ebruary 16, 1876,
Julia Borland, daughter of Dr. John Nelson
and Madeline f Gibson) Borland, descendant
of John P.orland. born about iGCto, from Scot-
land. He married (second) April, 1898,
Corinna Shattuck. Children, born in Boston :
I. Francis Lee, born November 29, 1877;
graduate of Harvard. i</x3. 2. Mary Cabot,
br)rn December 3, 1878. 3. Juliet Borland,
born March Ci. 1881. 4. I'arbara, born March
28, 1884. Children of second wife: 5. Corinna,



born September 19, 1899. 2. Eleanor, Novem-
ber 22, 1900. 3. (}€orge. December 21, 1904.

( X) James Perkins Higginson, son of Cap-
tain Stephen (2) Higginson, was born in Bos-
ton, July, 1792. He was educated in the jniblic
.schools and engaged in business. He died at
Boston. January 10, 1878. He married, in
1813, Mrs. Martha ( Babcock ) Higginson,
daughter of Adam and Martha Babcock, of
Boston. She was the widow of his brother,
George Higginson, mentioned above. Chil-
dren, born in Boston: i. Frances Saltonstall,
born May 28, 1814: married Charles Dudley
Head; died December 16, 1901. 2. Louisa
(iore, born Xovembcr 5, 1815, died in Boston,
December 16, 187O. 3. Mary Hubbard, born
and died in 1817. 4. Sarah' Rhea, born De-
cember 22, 1819; married William Tnger.soll
Bowditch. 5. Charles James, born December
7, 1 82 1 : married, January 27, 1887, Mrs. Su.san
Wilcox. 6. John .\ugustus, born June 21,
1S24, died February 14, 1908. 7. Henry Fred-
erick, mentioned below.

(XI) Henry Frederick Higginson. son of
James Perkins Higginson, was born in Bos-
ton, September 5, 1825, and died there March
31, 1891. He was educated at Air. Thayer's
school, Boston. He was in business in early
life in the Calcutta trade, later in the Sand-
wich Glass Company. During the last twenty
years of his life he was retired from active
business. In politics he was independent, and
in religion a Unitarian. He married, .Xpril
15, 1857, Mary Jarves, born in 1832, died in
I'.rooklinc, May 10, 1863, daughter of Dem-
ing Jarves and Ann Stetson. Their only child
was Frederick.

(XH) Frederick Higginson, son of Henry
Frederick Higginson. was born in Boston, Jan-
uary 25, i860. He was educated at the Eng-
lish high school, Boston. He is a merchandise
broker, with offices at 70 Kilby street. He
resides in Brooklinc. In j)olitics is an inde-
[tendcnt, and in religion a Unitarian, a mem-
ber of Dr. Lyons' church, at Brooklinc. He
married, June 12. 1883. in Boston. Mary
Brazer Ellis, born in I^orchesler, June 10,
1862, daughter of Henry I'ayson and .Anne