Page:The Granite Monthly Volume 7.djvu/70

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��THE GRANITE MONTHLY.

��for many years he is said to have pos- sessed a larger stock of neat cattle than any other man who ever lived in town. He was the richest man in lands and cattle, probaljly, that ever lived in town at any time, though there ma}*^ have been others since worth as much money as he. He was a good farmer for those times, industrious, of temperate habits and good moral character. He was benevolent in his way, but was in the habit of scrutinizing pretty thoroughly the ob- jects to which he gave. He was pub- lic spirited and enterprising.

In 1824, or thereabout, he moved to the village, and for a short time kept the tavern at the old stand, which he then owned, and which was located near where Mr. H. P. Chase's house now stands. This l)usiness was not congenial to his tastes, and he soon moved from there into the three-story house adjoining, where he resided un- til his death, which occurred Septem- ber 4, 1840, aged 71 years. Hannah Paige, his wife, was the daughter of Joseph Kimball, who was an early settler in town, moving from Ply- mouth. She died, respected, Febru- ary 17, 1837, aged 65. Their children were as follows :

James K. Paige, l>orn July 26, 1794.

Ephraim Paige, born May 22, 1796.

John Paige, born April 27, 1798.

Eleanor Paige, born Feb'y 19, iSoo.

Samuel Paige, born March 17. 1S03.

Joseph Paige, born July 19, 1S05.

Louisa Paige, born April 18, iSii.

Hannah Paige, born April 13, 1816.

Of the daughters, Eleanor married Jesse Eaton, who lived and died in Wentworth, leaving a family, who re- side in Wentworth and vicinity. Lou- isa married James McQuesten, of Plymouth, where they both died, leav- ing one daughter, who resides in Ply- mouth. Hannah married (i) Isaac W. Wright, and (2) Asa Goodell ; she lived and died in Wentworth, leaving one daughter. Joseph Paige lived and died in Wentworth leaving a fam- ily. Two sons of his are physicians in Taunton, Mass. Samuel Paige

��was never married. John Paige lived and died in Wentworth, leaving a daughter who resides in Lawrence, Mass. iLphraim Paige lived most of his life in Wentworth, finally moved to Warren, and died there, leaving a family.

James K. Paige inherited the same farm from his father, Capt. John Paige, which he inherited from his father, Ephraim Paige. This was one of the best farms in town, and being selected by Ephraim Paige, about 1773, on his removal from Salisbury, Mass., it re- mained in the same family for eighty years, until 1853, when the town pur- chased it of James K. Paige, for a poor-farm, as it was called, and Mr. Paige mo\'ed to Rumney and died the same year. He had been a mili- tary man in his younger days, and for many years bore the title of colonel. He was afterward chosen a deacon of the Congregational church in Went- worth, which ofiice he held until his death. He married Annie Maria Ramsey, of Rumney, who died Au- gust 19, 1867. They were both very industrious, temperate, and exemplary in their lives, and for many years they were leading and worthy members of the church, to whose prosperity they were strongly devoted. They left seven children — four sons and three daughters, all of whom moved to \Vis- consin many years ago, except one daughter who now resides in Concord, N. H.

For many years after the first settle- ment of the town, the level space now occupied by the village common, and the two rows of houses, one on either side of the common, was occupied as a cemetery, and instead of the high- way that now runs through the village, the road then went south of the pres- ent village, near the brook, and on the north side of it, from where the Ells- worth hill road crossed the brook below the mill, on the west, to the end of the bridge that then crossed Baker's river at the east or south-east of the village. After a time the high- way was changed and laid out up

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