WOOD, JONATHAN, s. of Jonathan, m. Betsey Bancroft; their ch. were: 1. Polly B., b. Nov. 4, 1809, m. Oran Partridge. 2. Betsey, b. Jan. 2, 1812. 3. Almond, b. July 22, 1814. 4. Smyrna, b. Oct. 21, 1815. IIis second wife was Sarah Perley; their ch. were: 1. Sally C., b. June 27, 1818. 2. Nelson P., b. Jan. 26, 1821, m. Mary Nichols.

WOOD, BENJAMIN, s. of Jonathan 1st, m. Sarah Hill; their ch. were: 1. Betsey, b. Jan. 28, 1826. 2. Amanda, b. Oct. 6, 1827. 3. Lowell, b. Sept. 17, 1829. 4. Oliver, b. Oct. 31, 1831. 5. Geo. F., b. Feb. 25, 1834. 6. Mary A., b. July 17, 1836.

;

WOOD, ELIJAH, an early settler, located in the southwest part of the town, where Abijah Hinds now lives. He m. Isabella their ch. were: 1. Isabella, b. Dec. 5, 1772. 2. Elijah R., b. Sept. 18, 1774. 3. Susanna, b. Mar. 11, 1777. 4. Eunice, b. Apr. 9, 1779. 5. Abel, b. Apr. 18, 1781. 6. Dolly, b. Apr. 5, 1784. 7. Timothy, b. Dec. 24, 1786.

WOOD, JEREMIAH, m. Rebecca

; their ch. were: 1. Mary, b.

June 29, 1805. 2. Heret. b. Oct. 16, 1808. 3. Betsey, b. Feb. 3, 1811. 4. Silas, b. Oct. 25, 1813.

WOOD, NAHUM, m. Ruth Jackson, dau. of Elisha Jackson; they had one child named Louisa, b. Sept. 24, 1800. Soon after he moved to Maine where he had other children.

WOOD, AARON, brother of Nahum, m. Lucy Jackson, dau. of Elisha Jackson; their ch. were: 1. Lucy, b. Sept. 30, 1792, m. Joseph Bacon. 2. Sally, b. Mar. 7, 1795, m. Seth Whitney. 3. Aaron, b. Dec. 11, 1797. His second wife was Bethia Beard; their ch. were: 1. Moses, b. Apr. 2, 1803, m. Mary Comee. 2. Cyrena, b. Jan. 20, 1805, m. Ephraim Wright. 3. Asaph, b. Dec. 30. 1806. 4. Amanda, b. Feb. 3, 1809, m. Merrick Nichols. 5. Emeline, b. May 23, 1811, m. Samuel S. Howe. 6. Theophilus P., b. Oct. 4, 1813. 7. Abel S., b. July 17, 1815, m. Sarah Russell. His second wife was Caroline E. Allen.

WOOD, MOSES, s. of Aaron, m. Mary Comee; their ch. were: 1. William B., b. July 21, 1830. 2. James C., b. Apr. 13, d. Apr. 17, 1835. 3. Mary T., b. Sept. 12, 1837. 4. Charles Henry, b. Sept. 25, 1843. 5. Edward L., b. Oct. 6, 1845.

WOOD, ASAPH, s. of Aaron, m. Martha Edgell; their ch. were: 1. Prucius M., b. Nov. 9, 1830, d. June 16, 1831. 2. Prucius M., b. July 17, 1832. 3. Amanda, b. Mar. 10, 1834, m. Moses Emery. 4. Theophilus, b. Nov. 30, 1836, d. Apr. 28, 1838. 5. Lucy A., b. Sept. 5, 1838. 6. Theophilus P., b. June 22, 1840. 7. Adelia, b. Oct. 9, 1841. His second wife was Abbie H. Pierce. She had one child named Eliza H., b. Jan. 8, 1846, m. Elijah Warren.

WOOD, THEOPHILUS P., s. of Aaron, m. Eliza A. Cutler. They had one child named Charles, b. July 20, 1841, d. Feb. 19, 1842. Mr. Wood died June 15, 1843.

WOOD, SILAS, m. Sarah Howe, dau. of Ebenezer; their ch. were: 1. Amos, b. Dec. 15, 1801. 2. Phebe, b. Jan. 23, 1804, d. Jan. 1804.

31,

WOOD, LYMAN F., m. Elvira Ray; their ch. were: 1. Mary F., b. Sept. 20, 1836, d. Oct. 7, 1836. 2. Francis L., b. Jan. 11, 1838. 3. Converse, b. Nov. 27, 1840, d. Dec. 11, 1840. 4. Edwin L., b. July 16, 1843.

Wright, JosepH, from Sterling, one of the early settlers, located in the south part of the town on Wright's Hill. He m. Rebecca Nichols ; their ch. were: 1. Rebecca, b. June 25, 1791, m. Walter Greenwood. 2. Joseph, b. Apr. 3, 1794, m. Nancy Eaton. 3. Nathaniel, b. May 30, 1796, m. Susan Edgell. 4 Lucy, b. May 8, 1798, m. Farwell Couant. 5. Ephraim, b. June 22, 1800 6. Martha, b. July 12, 1802, m. Levi Heywood. 7. Louisa, b. June 4, 1804, m. Hiram Clark. 8. Edward, b. June 20, 1806, m. Catherine Conant. 9. David, b. Oct. 25, 1808, m. Elizabeth Gay. 10. Polly, b. Oct. 24, 1810, m. Abijah M. Severy. 11. Emily, b. Dec. 24, 1814, m. Seth Heywood.

WRIGHT, JOSEPH, s. of Joseph, m. Nancy Eaton. They had one child named Charles A., b. Sept. 11, 1823.

WRIGHT, NATHANIEL, 8. of Joseph 1st, m. Susan Edgell; their ch. were: 1. Susan, b. Oct. 29, 1823, m. W. W. Walton. 2. Marcus, b. Apr. 23, 1825, m. Maria S. Bent. 3. Thomas, b. Aug. 15, 1829, d. July 12, 1830. 4. Francis, b. Nov. 3, 1831, d. May 14, 1832. 5. Martha, b. Aug. 3, 1836, m. Elias E. Horton.

WRIGHT, EPHRAIM, s. of Joseph 1st, m. Cyrena Wood; they had one child named William W., b. May 23, 1824, d. Feb. 24, 1825. His second wife was, Sally W. Bancroft. His third wife was Eliza Brick; their ch. were: 1. William W., b. Feb. 5, 1830. 2. Edwin, d. 3. Eliza, d. 4. Edwin, m. Almira Jackson. 5. Charles, m. Hattie M. Hill. 6. Henry. 7. Ann Eliza, m. Walter Pratt. WRIGHT, DAVID, S. of Joseph 1st, m. Elizabeth Gay; their ch. were: 1. Catherine A., b. Apr. 9, 1839, m. Charles F. Read. 2. Ellen E., b. Dec. 25, 1843.

50

CHAPTER XVI.

BIOGRAPHIC.

"Honour and shame from no condition rise;
Act well your part, there all the honour lies.

Worth makes the man, and want of it the fellow;
The rest is all but leather or prunello."-Pope.

E shall include, in this chapter, the names of resident

WE

physicians, physicians who have resided here, dentists, resident lawyers, graduates who were born here, but pursuing their professions elsewhere, graduates of various schools, academies and colleges, and other men of note. The different clergymen who have served the town, will receive attention in the chapter on churches.

RESIDENT PHYSICIANS.

DAVID PARKER, M. D., was born in Westford, Mass., March 18th, 1802, where his ancestors settled, before the incorporation of that town. There were three brothers who came from Europe, in the same ship. One settled at Lexington, from whom sprang Bishop Parker, and Captain John Parker, who was killed in the battle of Lexington, also Theodore Parker. Another settled in Reading, Mass., and the third in Westford, from whom have descended several lawyers and eminent judges, of our courts, besides many physicians. Dr. David Parker, a descendant of the latter, came to Gardner, October 23d, 1823, having spent three years, as a student, at Westford. He commenced

the study of medicine with his brother Horace. He attended his first course of lectures at Pittsfield, the next year after coming to Gardner. He was afterwards a student in the office of Dr. Nathan Smith, of New Haven. In 1827, he attended a course of lectures at Castleton, Vt., at the close of which, he received the degree of M. D. He then returned to Gardner, where he practiced, with his brother, about nine months. In accordance with the advice of his brother, he then went to Boston and was, for a time, in the office of Dr. George B. Doane, who was head surgeon of the American fleet, sent out against Algiers. While in Boston, he attended the lectures of Drs. John C. Warren, James Jackson and Walter Channing. While in Dr. Doane's office, whose kindly assistance and friendship he enjoyed, he was a constant visitor at the Massachusetts General Hospital, where he was thrown into a dissecting class with Drs. Charles G. Jackson and Willard Parker, now the most eminent physician and surgeon in New York.

At the time Dr. Parker commenced the practice of medicine, in this town, the Massachusetts Statute, concerning physic and surgery, required that, "Every person, who has been licensed to practice physic or surgery, since the year one thousand eight hundred and eighteen, or who shall hereafter be so licensed, shall deposit a copy of his license with the clerk of the town, in which such licentiate may reside; and the said clerk shall file in his office such copy, attested by him with his certificate thereon, of the time when the same was so deposited, for which he shall receive, from the licentiate, the sum of fifty cents." In accordance with this provision of the statute, Dr. Parker deposited the following diploma, which we have transcribed from the town records, as a matter of interest to practitioners of the present day :