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.]

PINKHAM The ancient spelling of the name of this strong old family in England is Pyncombe, and is said to be derived from Pyn, which signifies a pine, and Combe, a hollow or ridge, easily translated into Pine Ridge or Hollow, or a place where sturdy trees grow, and so emblematical of the noble development of a family that withstood bravely life's shocks and storms. Wherever we come upon a bit of Pyncombe history it is intensely interesting, and is starred with heroic and noble deeds. The branch of the family at North Molton, England, came there with Lord Zouch in the time of Henry VII, and there, and in other towns where members of the family moved, made records which glow with patriotism of the very highest type. They married into noble families, and the coat-of-arms which is most frequently seen in America was granted to John Pyncombe of the fifth generation of this Molton line, July 24, 1616. He married Annie Doddridge, a sister of the famous Judge Doddridge. It is claimed that the Pinkhams of the New England and nearly all of the western states were descended from this line, and surely their noble deeds and helpful lives are a very strong proof in favor of this theory. (I) Richard Pinkham, American ancestor, is first mentioned in the records of Dover Neck, N. H., in 1640, and there is no doubt that of his having arrived there at a very much earlier date. Earnest students of the family history are certain that Richard Pinkham came from England in the good ship "James" in the famous colony which Capt. Richard Wiggans brought over to New England in 1633. He bore the strong characterisitcs of the other members of this stalwart band, "some of whom were of good estates, and of some account for religion." On the 22nd of October, 1640, the people of Dover Neck established, or renewed, a formal grant, the fourth name on that wonderful document being that of Richard Pinkham. Dr. Quint designates this document as "Dover's Magna Charta," and says, "It antedated in practice by one hundred and thirty-six years the principles announced in the Declaration of Independence of 1776. A copy of this paper was found in the public record office of London, England, and every member of the Pinkham family should turn to it with just pride and admiration." The next record of Richard Pinkham in the history of Dover is equally interesting: "27th of the 9th month, 1648. It is this day ordered by a publique Towne Meeting that Richard Pinkham shall beat ye drum on the Lord's Day, to give notice of the time of the meeting, and to sweepe ye meeting house, for the which he shall be allowed six bushels of Indian corn for his pay this years, and to be free from rates." It is clear that this sturdy religious sentry stood long at his post which was so carefully chosen for him by that God-fearing old town. "No sinner could assert that he knew not it was the Lord's Day while those stirring drum beats were heard." The musical ability of this man has been seen in many of his descendants, and his faithfulness marks thousands of Pinkham homes. One of the mose eminent historians of Dover has well said, "Richard Pinkham appears to have been a man of good character, and had his share of the public offices. The spot where he early dwelt is the same as that on which stood the Pinkham garrison which no wily band of Indians was ever able to enter or destroy, and which Richard afterward made into his habitation. This old farm is still (1908) owned by one bearing the Pinkham name, and is often visited by many admiring friends and travelers." He was one of those most honest, brave and studious men that sought the shores of New England. The full madien name of the wife of Richard Pinkham is not known, as she is only spoken of as "Julia" in the few odd documents which make mention of her, but all agree that she was a woman of noblest Christian character. The following are the names of their children as gathered from old records. Children: 1. Richard, who was a carpenter residing in Dover; married Elizabeth Leighton, and had a long line of noble descendants, one strong branch 0of which lived in Nantucket, Massachusetts. 2. John, who also resided on Dover Neck. 3. Thomas, who was taxed at Dover Neck in March, 1647, and who probably died soon after this date. (II) John, son of Ancestor Richard Pinkham, was first taxed on Dover Neck in 1665, and lived a long and very useful life on the old Pinkham homestead which his father had conveyed to him as his favorite son on condition that he take good care of him in his old age, which work was done in the most loving and patient manner. His will is still (1908) preserved and shows him a noble father and Christian citizen. He married the heroic Rose Otis, who was taken to Canada as a captive when the Otis garrison at Dover Neck was over-whelmed by the Indians and was ransomed after adventures of the most thrilling character. She was the daughter of Richard and Rose (Stoughton) Otis, and thus a descendant of two of the strongest of old English families. Children: 1. Richard. 2. Thomas, married Mercy Allen. 3. Amos, who, like many of the Pinkhams in the long generations, became a very devoted member of the Friends' church and married Mrs. Elizabeth Chesley. 4. Rose, married (first) James Tuttle, and (second) Thomas Canne (Kenny). 5. Solomon, who was a famous blacksmith and landowner at Madbury, N. H. 6. Otis, who is said to have been born about 1700 and to have died about 1763, inheriting and occupying the old Pinkham homestead, where he and his wife Abigail (Tebbets) Pinkham, and his large family lived noble and helpful lives. 7. James, married Elizabeth Smith, and became the founder of one of the very noblest lines of the Pinkham family. 8. Elizabeth. 9. Sarah. (III) Thomas, son of John and Rose (Otis) Pinkham, was a man of deep piety and of great force of character, marrying on Dec. 2, 1700, Mercy Allen, of one of the strong old N. H. families, and they and many of their line were sturdy members of the Friends' church in many states. Children: 1. Sarah. 2. Joseph. 3. Mary. 4. Richard. 5. Ebenezer, born at Dover Neck, N. H. Nov. 14, 1712, and early removed to Harpswell, Maine, where he died Jan. 6, 1762, a man of the noblest character. 6. Benjamin, who removed to Boothbay, Maine, when quite a young man. 7. Martha, married Joseph Giles, and removed to Boothbay, Maine. All these children had families of a most worthy character, and are widely scattered over America. (IV) Benjamin, son of Thomas and Mercy (Allen) Pinkham, was born at Dover Point, N. H. 1717, died at Boothbay, Maine, March 2, 1792. Mr. B. F. Greene, the excellent historian of Boothbay, and other Maine towns, says "Benjamin Pinkham and his wife Judith came to Townsend, Maine, in 1759, and settled where the late Eben Clisby lived at East Boothbay. Benjamin Pinkham was a man of sturdy religious character, modest, and very faithful in all of his many labors for humanity. His children and descendants were very helpful in all their many lines of good work in Boothbay, and in every other place where they made their homes. They were sturdy patriots in the churches which were organized at early dates; owners of goodly acres; sea captains whose bravery and foresight were known in many home and foreign ports; business men of care and thrift; men and women whose faithful lives were a constant inspiration to good deeds in all who knew them. The noblest traits of Benjamin Pinkham of Boothbay and his children still shine with undimmed luster among the descendants in the old home town of Boothbay and wherever the rides of time have widely scattered them." Judith, the wife of Benjamin Pinkham, died at Boothbay, Oct. 23, 1797, aged seventy-six years. Children: 1. Ichabod, born 1741, died 1800, being a captain in the revolutionary war, and one of the foremost citizens in Boothbay. 2. Solomon. 3. Benjamin, married Ella Cartland and Rhoda Hutchings. 4. Nathaniel, a very prominent man, married Martha Cartland. 5. Rhoda, married Benjamin Billings. 6. Sarah, married William Lewis. 7. Calvin, a very faithful worker in the Baptist church of Boothbay; married Elizabeth Barter. (V) Solomon, son of Benjamin and Judith Pinkham, a very helpful resident at North Boothbay, married mary Perry. Children: 1. Captain Joseph, born at Boothbay, Nov. 26, 1767, died in Washington, Maine, in advanced years, having been one of the msot successful captains on the Maine coast; married Widow Alice Cunningham. 2. Calvin, always resided in Boothbay. 3. Solomon, died at Starks, Maine. 4. Sarah, married Joseph Barter Jr. 5. Hannah, married David Day. 6. Captain David, who was a very successful shipmaster; married Sarah Bryer. 7. Margaret, married Timothy Dunton. 8. Judith, married John Webber. 9. Mary. 10. Abigial, married James Moore. (VI) Calvin, son of Solomon and Mary (Perry) Pinkham, was born in Boothbay, Maine, Feb. 10, 1769, and always resided in the western part of Boothbay. He married, in 1793, Joicy Kenney, born in Boothbay, 1770, died Nov. 2, 1863, daughter of Thomas and Jemima (Foster) Kenney, her father being a very faithful soldier in the revolutionary war. Children: 1. Thomas, always resided in Boothbay; married Emma Abbott. 2. Fanny, married John Lewis. 3. Benjamin, lived on Barter's Island at Boothbay; married Abigail Lewis. 4. Mina, married Giles Lewis. 5. Frederic, married Phoebe Lewis. 6. Luther, married Ann Dawes. 7. Jonathan, a famous pilot of the Maine coast. 8. Esther, married Charles Day. 9. Daniel. (VII) Daniel, son of Calvin and Joicy (Kenney) Pinkham, was born in Boothbay, June 12, 1817, died May 16, 1896. He was a man of sterling qualities, who always resided at Boothbay, following the sea for some time, and being one of the selectmen of the town. He married, Dec. 9, 1840, Lucretia Roberts, born in Westport, Maine, March 31, 1822, died Nov. 21, 1896, the daughter of John and Abigial (Dunton) Roberts, from which lines she inherited a noble and helpful character. She was a descendant of Thomas Robbins, who came from England to Salem, Mass. in 1680; and from John Poole, of Taunton, England, who came to Beverly, Mass. in 1690. Children: 1. Hattie Eliza, born Sept. 12, 1841, died in Boothbay June 1, 1878; married Sept. 3, 1860, George Washington Reed; no children. 2. Stephen Hodgdon. 3. Abbie Ellen, born Aug. 12, 1847, married, in Boothbay, Maine, March 2, 1867, James Wesley Reed, and has a large and very interesting family. 4. Fernando Lewis, born Aug. 14, 1853, resides at Trevett, Maine; married Jan. 18, 1874, Josephine Decker; children: Howard, Stephen H., Alden and Merrill. 5. Clara Evaline,born Sept. 19, 1860, has always resided in Boothbay, where her helpful life is highly prized; married Jan. 11, 1880, Edson Cleveland Giles, born in Boothbay Jan. 3, 1858, and is a very successful farmer and proprietor of a grocery store; their children ar very studious and enterprising. 6. Ralph Elmer, born July 24, 1865, died at Baltimore, Maryland, where he was a fire engineer on a steamer; married Dec. 9, 1885, Josephine McFarland, of Bristol, Maine. children: Roy, Flossie and Clarence. (VIII) Stephen Hodgdon, son of Daniel and Lucretia (Roberts) Pinkham, was born in Boothbay, Dec. 11, 1841, died Dec. 23, 1870, being one of the highly respected citizens of the town. His life was full of the quiet and kindly deeds which had marked his long line of ancestry. He enlisted in the Nineteenth Maine Volunteers. He married, Jan. 10, 1869, Elizabeth A. Campbell. Child: Frank Leslie Pinkham. (IX) Frank Leslie, son of Stephen Hodgdon and Elizabeth A. (Campbell) Pinkham, was born at Boothbay, April 2, 1870; he now (1908) resides in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, his office being in the Frick building there. The first of seventeen years of his life were spent near Georgetown, Prince Edward Island, on the farm of his grandfather, Roderick Campbell. He then entered the employ of the National Tube Works Company at McKeesport, Pennsylvania, with which company, its subdivisions and successors, he has been permanently connected for over twenty years, giving the most faithful and competent service and holding the following positions: Chief of cost department, McKeesport; chief clerk of United States Seamless Tube Works, Christy Park, Pennsylvania; chief accountant of National Tube Company, Pittsburg, Pennsylvania; chief clerk of the Western Tube Company, Kewanee, Illinois. In August, 1908, he was appointed assistant to the third vice-presidnt of the National Tube Company at Pittsburg. The Kewanee Daily Star-Courier said, "Mr. Pinkham's work in the east will be in the newly created position for which he is peculiarly well fitted, on account of his long experience with the pipe and tube departments, the seamless department, and the Kewanee department of the company. He is highly esteemed by all in this city, where he has resided for over four years. Manager J. C. Bannister of the local works declared that no praise could be too high for Mr. Pinkham as a man of ability and agreeable personality. His appointment is a fully merited compliment to him." Mr. Pinkham is a member of the First Methodist Episcopal Church of Kewanee, Illionois, a member of its board of steward, chairman of its financial committee and vice-adviser of the Men's Church Club. He is also a member of the Kewanee Club, the Kewanee Commercial Club and member of the committee of the investments of this club; member of Younghiogheny Lodge, No. 583, A. F. and A. M. He is also a member of the Young Men's Christian Association of Kewanee, director of the same and chairman of its educational committee. Mr. Pinkham married, Dec. 23, 1891, Lillie S. Hitchens, of McKeesport, Pennsylavnia. Child: Helen Ruth Pinkham, was born Oct. 27, 1892, and is a very promising scholar in the Kewanee, Illinois, high school. Richard Allen Hitchens, father of Lillie S. Pinkham, was born at St. Blazey Gate, Cornwall, England, Dec. 17, 1834, died at McKeesport, Feb. 28, 1907. He was for a long time a very successful merchant of McKeesport, and a faithful member of the Methodist Episcopal church. His wife, Mary A. P. (Sleep) Hitchens, was a native of Cornwall, England, and a woman of great purity of character and deep religious convictions.