Genealogical and Family History
of the
STATE OF MAINE

Compiled under the editorial supervision of George Thomas Little, A. M., Litt. D.

LEWIS HISTORICAL PUBLISHING COMPANY
New York
1909.

[Please see Index page for full citation.]

[Transcribed by Coralynn Brown]

[Many families included in these genealogical records had their beginnings in Massachusetts.]

CHAPLIN It is said by tradition and confirmed by the researches of antiquarians that the family name Chaplin is included with our English paronymics which are derived from vocations, hence it is reasoned that the remote ancestor of the family here under consideration was chaplain in an army. There was one of the surname Chaplin in the house of commons in the reign of Charles I of England, and there is one Henry Chaplin now a member of the same body. In the family there are three coats-of-arms, and they agree in essential respects, all griffins' heads, differently erased and gorged; and these arms are entitled to be worn by all who are descendants of Hugh Chaplin, the immigrant ancestor of a stong New England family of his surname, and of whom it is the purpose of this narrative to treat. (I) Jeremiah Chaplin, of Bradford, England, was born Aug. 4, 1541. (II) Ebenezer, of Bradford, England, son of Jeremiah Chaplin, was born May 10, 1572. (III) Hugh, son of Ebenezer Chaplin, was born in Bradford, England, May 22, 1603, came to New England with his wife Elizabeth in 1638, and had a grant of an acre and a half of land for a house lot in Rowley, Mass., on what now is Bradford street, and there he built his house, which still (1908) stands and is in good repair. He was made freeman in 1642, and according to the history of Rowley he was a surveyor of land, and was included in the list of men of that ancient plantation of whom it is written that they all were "godly men of good estate." Hugh Chaplin died in Rowley, and was buried there 22 1 mo. 1653. His will, written with his own hand, is on file in the court of probate in Salem, and gives evidence that he was a man of educational attainments, indicated by his writing and clear grammatical expression. Children, b. in Rowley: 1. John, born 26 6 mo. 1643, buried Sept. 5, 1660. 2. Joseph, born 11 12 mo. 1646, married Elizabeth West. 3. Thomas, born 2 7 mo. 1648, buried June 21, 1660. 4. Jonathan, born 10 10 mo. 1651, buried Nov. 24, 1659. (IV) Joseph, son of Hugh and Elizabeth Chaplin, was born in Rowley, 11th day of the 12th month, 1646, and married Feb. 21, 1671-72, Elizabeth, daughter of Twiford and Mary West. Children, b. in Rowley: 1. Joseph, born April 4, 1673, had wife Mehitable. 2. John, born Oct. 26, 1674. 3. Jonathan, baptized April 15, 1677. 4. Jeremiah, born July 28, 1680, ancestor of the Rev. Jeremiah Chaplin, founder and first president of Colby College; married Ann Kilborn. 5. Elizabeth, born Sept. 20, 1682, married John Searle. (V) John, son of Joseph and Elizabeth (West) Chaplin, was born in Rowley, Mass., Oct. 26, 1674, died Jan. 24, 1762 [trans note: can't be 1762 if he m. in 1701; maybe they meant to type in 1862?] He married April 9, 1701, Margaret, daughter of Sergeant Caleb Boynton, who is believed to have been a son of Sir Matthew Boynton of the Rowley colony. Children, b. in Rowley: 1. Hannah, born Feb. 20, 1702, married May 27, 1724, Israel Hazen. 2. Elizabeth, born April 9, 1705. 3. John, baptized June 12, 1709, died Dec. 31, 1712. 4. Mehitable, baptized Dec. 4, 1709. 5. John, baptized January, 1712-13, died soon. 6. Margaret, married June 2, 1736, Thomas Wood. 7. John, baptized May 12, 1717. 8. Moses. (VI) John (2), son of John (1) and Margaret (Boynton) Chaplin, was born in Rowley, Mass. and was baptized there May 12, 1717. In some of the records he is called lieutenant, from which it may be inferred that he gave some service during the early wars with the French and Indians, although no actual record of his service is found. The sword of Lieut. John Chaplin was handed down and kept in the family until recently (1908) destroyed by fire when the old homestead was burned in a few years since. He married (first) in Boxford, Mass., Jan. 27, 1746-47, Hepzibah, who died in August, 1771, daughter of Ezekiel Jewett. He married (second) in Newbury, Mass., June 16, 1772, Sarah Stickney. John Chaplin died Jan. 21, 1774. Childrenm all of 1st wife, b. in Rowley: 1. Hepzibah, born Sept. 26, 1750. 2. Joseph, born Feb. 22, 1752, served in the revolution. 3. David, born Jan. 26, 1754, served in the revolution. 4. Lydia, born Dec. 2, 1755. 5. John, born Jan. 22, 1758. 6. Daniel, born March 8, 1760, served in the revolution, and afterward settled at Waterford, Maine. 7. Martha, born Aug. 4, 1762, died Jan. 13, 1763. 8. Caleb, twin with Louis, born March 20, 1764. 9. Louis, twin with Caleb, born March 20, 1764. 10. Eunice, born Aug. 1, 1766, married (first) Bronson Emerson, (second) James Pool. (VII) John (3), son of John (2) and Hepzibah (Jewett) Chaplin, was born in Rowley, Mass., Jan. 22, 1758, and with three of his brothers served with credit during the war of the revolution. About 1790 he went to Maine and was one of the first settlers in the town of Bridgton. He married in Rowley, Margaret Jewett, his cousin, and they had fourteen children, all sons, six of whom were born in Rowley, and eight in Bridgeton. Children: 1. John, born April 30, 1780, died July 5, 1784. 2. Jacob, born April 13, 1782, married (first) Miriam Jackson, (second) Susan Kimball. 3. John, born Aug. 20, 1784, married Lydia Knowles. 4. Benjamin, born Sept. 26, 1786. 5. Caleb, twin with Daniel, born April 22, 1789, died young. 6. Daniel, twin with Caleb, born April 22, 1789. 7. William, born in Bridgeton, Sept. 15, 1791. 8. Eliphalet, twin with Robert, born Sept. 15, 1791, died young. 10. [they left out 9] Washington, born April 15, 1796, married Almira Martin. 11. Thomas, born April 22, 1799. 12. Eliphalet, born Dec. 26, 1801, died young. 13. Caleb, born 1803, married Ruth Jordan. 14. Robert Andrews, born 1805, married Priscilla White. (VIII) Benjamin, fourth son of John and Margaret (Jewett) Chaplin, was born in Rowley, Mass. Sept. 26, 1786, and spent nearly his whole life in Maine. He was an industrious and thrifty man. Mr. Chaplin married Jane Welch, and by her had twelve children, the last eight of whom were born in Naples, Maine. Children: 1. James, born July 7, 1816, soldier in the civil war; was taken prisoner soon after his regiment had gone to the front, and was compelled to wear shackles on his wrists and ankes until they wore into the flesh, a special punishment inflicted on him because he firmly refused to swear allegiance to the Southern Confederacy; married Eliza Waterman. 2. Jacob, born Feb. 19, 1818, married (first) Harriet Gates, (second) Mary Brocklebank. 3. Colonel Daniel, born Bridgton, Jan. 22, 1820, soldier and officer of the Union army during the civil war; killed in one of the last engagements of the war; married Susan Gibbs. 4. Eliphalet, born May, 1822, died in infancy. 5. Caleb A., born May 8, 1824. 6. Caroline A., born April 27, 1826, married George E. Lown; one of their sons was killed in service during the civil war. 7. Washington, born July 13, 1828, married Joanna Stuart. 8. Ellen, born Aug. 4, 1830, married (first) Captain Jeremiah Staples, (second) Peter Jerries. 9. Cyrus, born Sept. 22, 1832, soldier of the civil war; wounded in battle of the Wilderness; married Angeline Stuart. 10. Lydia, born Nov., 1834, married (first) ____ Delisle, (second) Warren Sanborn. 11. Margaret, born Feb., 1837, married Melville Wadling. 12. John, born July 22, 1839, solider of the civil war; served three enlistments, in the First, Tenth and Twenty-ninth regiments of Maine Infantry; married (first) Emeline Hestleton, (second) Louisa Woodbury. (IX) Hon. Caleb A., fifth son of Benjamin and Jane (Welch) Chaplin, was born in Naples, Maine, May 8, 1824, died Sept. 20, 1890, after a long, useful and honorable life, many years of which were given to public service. His early literary education was gained in the common schools and North Bridgton Academy, and while attending at the latter institution he taught several terms of winter school. Early in the war he entered the service, was appointed quarter-master of the Twelfth Maine Volunteer Infantry, and served at Fortress Monroe and Ship Island, and under General Butler at and in the vicinity of New Orleans. While there he was discharged for diabilities contracted in the service and during the period of his recovery he took up the study of law, and at the same time served in various public capacities, several years being selectman of Bridgton. He also was county commissioner from 1863 to 1866, and in 1866 removed to Harrison and began active practice, having been admitted to the bar. In connection with professional pursuits he was much engaged in official life outside of the law, was for three terms chairman of the board of selectmen of Harrison and for many years superintending school committee of the town. He always manifested a deep and wholesome interest in educational affairs generally and did much good work in promoting the welfare of the public schools and in advancing their efficiency. He was one of the trustees of Bridgton Academy and also of the State College at Orino, holding both offices at the time of his death. In 1872 he was elected to a seat in the state senate and was re-elected in the following year. Mr. Chaplin was an able lawyer, a leader of the bar, and for many years ranked with the foremost men of his profession in the state. His knowledge of the law was deep, and he was a close, careful student throughout the period of his practice. He was a natural orator, a splendid advocate at the bar, and always won favor both with the court and the jury by his superior power of reasoning, his sound and logical argument, and candid presentation. In this respect he was a power in the trial courts, and at the same time he always was a safe, prudent counsellor, fair in his opinions and frank in the expression of them, and perfectly straightforward in every transaction of whatever character. His talents were versatile and lay not alone in legal channels. His power of memory was remarkable and never was he at loss to adapt himself to any condition or any presence. His mind was studious as well as practical and retentive, and once read a subject never afterward was forgotten. All through his life history and mathematics were favorite studies, and at the same time his fertile mind was a storehouse of the writings of famous authors, Scott, Burns, Campbell, Longfellow, Tennyson. He was familiar with their best productions and could repeat them almost at will. While a student at old Bridgton Academy, in the days when weekly declamation was a part of the course, he once recited the whole of Byron's "Siege of Corinth" at one time. He always maintained that once well known a subject could not be forgotten, and while laid aside for a time, perhaps for years, such was the quality of his mind that it could be recalled on any occasion. And withal, Mr. Chaplin was a man of very gentle bearing and disposition; his temperament was calm, his home his castle and the one place he loved best of all. He frequently quoted Napoleon's words to his old guard, "where can one better be than in the bosom of his family," and this sentiment always appeared to be a controlling principle of his life and he held to it steadfastly. In politics he was a firm and unyielding Republican and for many years occupied a high place in the councils of the party in the state. He was brought up under the influence of the Free-Will Baptist church and was an earnest worker in advancing the usefulness of the church and its Sunday school. He was a regular attendant on the sessions of both, and taught others by example as well as by precept. He said that it was easier for him to say "come, children, let us go to Sunday school," than "children, go to Sunday school," and he made it his pleasure to accompany them regularly until they were grown to manhood and womanhood. He loved his children, and all children, joined with them in their pastimes with the enthusiasm of youth, and they all loved, respected and obeyed him in return. He was a lover of horses and always kept a good one, and was a good sportsman, a "crack shot," and at "checkers" he was an expert. He made the most and best of life in every sense, always honorably, and was always willing to share his own successes and pleasures with others. In short, he was a good man, true and upright, and the world was made better by his life in it, and his example set for others never led any man into error. Caleb A. Chaplin married, March 25, 1849, Abigail M. Chaplin, born Dec. 6, 1822, died July 20, 1905, daughter of John and Lydia (Knowles) Chaplin. Children: 1. Clara J., born Bridgton, Nov. 2, 1850, married James S. Fleck. 2. David Byron, born July 4, 1852, died Sept. 7, 1853. 3. Sarah Ellerette (Ella E.), born Bridgton, March 20, 1854, married James Henry Tolman. 4. Geneva Abby, born Bridgton, Sept. 11, 1855, died Aug. 15, 1906; married James P. Lown. 5. Alma L., born Bridgton, April 7, 1858, died Aug. 27, 1858. Besides these children Mr. and Mrs. Chaplin had a son by adoption, Henri D., born July 20, 1855. CHAPLIN The ancestry of this numerous and distinguished family is traced back to Bradford, Yorkshire, England. The New England stock is descended from a Puritan who was driven to Leyden, in Holland, on account of his religious views. The Bridgton and Harrison familes came from Rowley, Mass, about 1778. They are noted for great size, many having weighed three hundred pounds. (I) Jeremiah Chaplin lived in Bradford, England, where he was born Aug. 4, 1541. (II) Ebenezer, son of Jeremiah Chaplin, was born in Bradford, England, May 10, 1572. (III) Hugh, son of Ebenezer Chaplin, was born in England May 22, 1603, and died in Massachusetts. He probably came to Mass. with Rev. Ezekiel Rogers and settled in Rowley in 1638, and there became a freeman May 18, 1642. He had an acre and a half house lot on Bradford street in 1643. He was buried first month 22d day, 1653. He brought with him his wife Elizabeth, who married (second) Dec. 9, 1656, Nicholas Jacobson. Children: John, Joseph, Thomas, Jonathan. (IV) Joseph, son of Hugh and Elizabeth Chaplin, was born on the eleventh day of the twelfth mont, 1646, and died April 17, 1705. His will, dated April 13, 1705, was probated May 7, 1705. He married Feb. 21, 1672, Elizabeth, daughter of Twiford and Mary West, then of Rowley. She was buried Oct. 12, 1702. Children: Joseph, John, Jonathan, Jeremiah and Elizabeth. (V) John, second son of Joseph and Elizabeth (West) Chaplin, was born in Rowley Oct. 26, 1674, and died Jan. 24, 1767, "aged 92 years & 2 months and some days." His will, dated Jan. 22, 1756, was proved March 30, 1767. His inventory was presented June 29, 1767. He married April 9, 1701, Margaret, daughter of Sergeant Caleb Boynton. She died April 22, 1735, suddenly. "She was distracted many years." Children: Hannah, Elizabeth, John (died young), Mehitable, John (died young), Margaret, John and Moses. (VI) John (2), third son of John (1) and Margaret (Boynton) Chaplin, was baptized in Rowley May 12, 1717 and died Jan. 21, 1774, syled "Lieut." His will, dated Jan. 4, 1774, proved Feb. 8, 1774, mentions wife Sarah and children: Joseph, David, John, Daniel, Caleb, Lydia, Lois and Eunice. (VII) John (3), third son of John (2) and Sarah Chaplin, is one of the Chaplins who settled in Bridgton and Harrison. He learned the blacksmiths trade in his native town and worked at it for some time. His left his forge at the call to arms in the days of the revolution and entered the ranks of the militia, going up from Ipswich and Rowley to Boston to join Washington's army. After the close of the war, some time prior to 1790, he removed to Cumberland county, Maine, and settled in the town of Bridgton, now Naples, where he died in 1830. The Massachusetts Revolutionary Rolls state that John Chaplin was a private in Captain Richard Peabody's company, Col. Edward Wigglesworth's regiment; and the pay abstract shows that he had a travel allowance from Ticonderoga home in 1776. He married in Rowley, Lydia ____, by whom he had thirteen sons, among whom was Caleb A. (VIII) Caleb A., son of John (3) and Lydia Chaplin, was born in Naples in 1804, and died in 1879. He stuck to the soil and prospered, having a farm of two hudnred acres. He never held any offices, and by minding his own business made life a success. He was extensively engaged in lumberint and farming, and was one of the leading men of the community, and a staunch Whig. He married Ruth Ann, daughter of Thomas Jordan, of Naples. She was born in 1807 and died in 1883. Children: 1. Augustine, married Ellen Plummer. 2. Mary Jane, wife of Newell Chute. 3. George Henry, married (first) Sarah Sanborn; (second) Ellen Chaplin. 4. Ann. 5. Alonzo C., married Antoinette Peabody. 6. Ashbel C., mentioned below. 7. Linda, wife of Isaac Waldron. 8. Cynthia W. 9. Maria, married David Chaplin. 10. Caroline. (IX) Ashbel Cram, fourth son of Caleb A. and Ruth A. (Jordan) Chaplin, was born in Naples Nov. 21, 1838, and died Sept [trans note: there appears to be text omitted]... For a timehe was a school teacher. He then removed to South Bridgton and was a member of the firm of Chaplin & Knapp,. dealers inm dry goods for five years. From that place he went to Stroudwater and there operated a salt and grist mill. In 1873 he settled in Portland and was a partner with D. W. Clark and Alonzo C. Chaplin in the ice business in South Portland, under thefirm name of Clark and Chaplin Ice Company. He retained his connection with this enterprise until his death. When the corporation was formed he became its treasurer. He was a Republican and a member of the common council in 1877-78-79. He was a member of Unity Lodge of Odd Fellows and of Oriental Masonic Lodge of Bridgton. He was married in Bridton, Nov. 21, 1861, to Huldah Maria Peabody, who was born at South Bridgton May 12, 1839, and survives her husband. Her parents were Israel Perley and Rebecca (Foster) Peabody; the former born in 1810, died March 25, 1885, a farmer and a deacon in the Congregational church. Rebecca Foster was born in Bridgton June 19, 1811, and died in the same place June 19, 1881. Children: 1. Flavel Ashbel, born Dec. 10, 1867, is superintendent of the Clark and Chaplin Ice Company; he married Rena Foss, and has one child, Donald G., b. June 29, 1901. 2. Carroll Sherman, born April 28, 1882, attended the public schools, graduated from the University of Maine in 1904, and from Harvard Law School with the class of 1908, and was admitted to the Cumberland bar in Oct., 1908. The Chaplin family is of long standing, and its present representatives are highly regarded in their various walks of life.