Deaths

(This is a listing of deaths of which word hasbeen received since the last issue. Full notices,which are usually written by the class secretaries,may appear in this issue or a later one.)

CLASS OF 1856

Colonel Francis Laban Town died in San Antonio, Texas, December 30, 1922, from the mittee, Clyfton Chandler '14 and Victor M. a few days before.

He was born in Jefferson, N. H., January 11, 1836, and took the course of the Chandler Scientific Department. He left college during senior year, but was given his diploma in 1898, and has since been enrolled as a graduate member of the class.

After leaving college he entered upon the study of medicine, and obtained his medical degree from Dartmouth in the class of 1860. He was commissioned first lieutenant and assistant surgeon U.S.A., May 28, 1861; March 13, 1865, he was given the brevet rank of captain and major for faithful and meritorious service, and on the same date the brevet rank of lieutenant colonel for his war service; May 28, 1866, he was commissioned captain and assistant surgeon; October 20, 1866, major and surgeon; in 1889, lieutenant colonel; in 1894 assistant surgeon general with the rank of colonel; with this rank he retired from active service in 1896. Since that date he has made his home in San Antonio. On page 312 of the MAGAZINE for February may be found mention of Colonel Town's bequest to the College.

He was the last survivor of the Chandler graduates of 1856, as the late Judge Dyer was of the Academical graduates. There is one man remaining who was for .a time a member of this class, but completed his course elsewhere—Rev. Edward E. Herrick of Milton, Vt.

CLASS OF 1865

Richard Kimball was born in New York city, January 11, 1845, and died December 25, 1922, at Waco, Texas, of a complication of diseases.

He was the son of Richard Burleigh Kimball, Dartmouth 1834, and Julia (Tomlinson) Kimball. He prepared for college at Litchfield Academy, Litchfield, Conn,, ! conducted at that time by Dr. Richards. He was a member of Alpha Delta Phi and Phi Beta Kappa.

Upon graduation he studied law, and, when admitted to practice in 1866, entered the office of his father in New York city. In the latter part of 1867 he went to Texas to assume the management of land interests which his father had in that . state. He .settled at Kimball, Texas, which had been founded by his father in 1859, took over the operation of a cotton plantation, and rapidly became immersed in business affairs and in the activities of his new environment. Later he resumed the practice of law at Meridian, Texas, which he continued until 1909, but retained until a few years prior to his death an active interest in the operation of his plantation properties. In 1916 he retired from active business and professional work, and removed to Waco, Texas, where he spent the last years of his life. During his practice of the law he was called on several occasions to occupy the bench in the trial of important cases in the Court of Appeals of his state, and was known throughout the state as Judge Kimball.

He was married August 25, 1881, at Kimball, Texas, to Miss Nancy Ogden, who died January 1, 1916. They had six children: Major Richard H. Kimball, United States Army; Miss Mary Kimball, who died in 1920; Misses Julia and Nancy Kimball, who resided with their father at the time of his death; and Harold 0., and Miss Margaret Kimball, who live in New York city.

Judge Kimball was descended on each side of his family from a long line of prominent New England stock. His great-grandfather, Richard Kimball, removed from Connecticut to New Hampshire shortly after the close of the Revolutionary War, and established the Kimball homestead near West Lebanon.

His grandfather, Captain Richard Kimball, a distinguished civil engineer, was prominent in the extension of the Erie Canal. His father, Richard Burleigh Kimball, was a lawyer of prominence in New York, and organized and became the first president of the Galveston, Houston, and Henderson Railway of Texas. He was also an author of distinction, his most noteworthy books being, "A Student's Life Abroad," Undercurrents of Wall Street," and "St. Leger." On his mother's side he was a direct descendant of the Adams family.

Judge Kimball was a man of deep religious conviction and broad culture, and interested himself actively in civic affairs. While he spent almost the entire period of his mature life in Texas, far. removed from the scenes of his early associations, he cherished until his death a strong affection for Dartmouth College and a high regard for the lofty standard she established and maintains.

CLASS OF 1866

Chester Wright Merrill died in Columbus, Ohio, January 7, 1923. On the 4th he fell during an attack of vertigo, breaking his hip, and was removed to a hospital, where he failed steadily until the end.

The son of Ferrand Fassett and Eliza Maria (Wright) Merrill, he was born in Montpelier, Vt., April 23, 1846, and fitted at the Washington County Grammar School. He was a member of Alpha Delta Phi and Phi Beta Kappa.

After graduation he taught in Appleton Academy, New Ipswich, N. H., for a short time, and then traveled for a text-book firm to 1870. In that year he removed to Cincinnati, and studied law in Cincinnati Law School, being admitted to the bar and beginning practice there in 1871. In 1878 he was appointed assistant librarian of the public library of that city, and in 1880 promoted to be librarian. This position he resigned in 1886. For six years he was a member of the Board of Education of Cincinnati, and for twelve years a member of the Board of Examiners of Teachers. In 1878 he published a volume of the ordinances of Cincinnati. A few years since he removed his home to Columbus.

December 12, 1878, Mr. Merrill was married to Mary Franklin of Chillicothe, Ohio, who survives him, with four children; Elizabeth, wife of Prof. Albert T. Cook, of Yale University; Julia Wright, superintendent of the branch libraries of Cincinnati; Ferrand Seymour, a civil engineer connected with the American Bridge Company; and Natalie.

A classmate describes Mr. Merrill as "a scholarly gentleman and a gentle soul."

CLASS OF 1873

John Lynde Briggs was born in Spring-field, Mass., March 16, 1852. He was the son of Albert Dwight Briggs, who was from Brattleboro, Vt., and Caroline (Clapp) Briggs of Northampton, Mass. His parents employed private tutors for him during his early education, and afterwards he attended Charlier's French Institute, New York city. There he completed his preparatory studies, and entered the Chandler Scientific Department in the fall of 1869. He was a member of the Phi Zeta Mu, now Sigma Chi, fraternity. Leaving Dartmouth at the close of his second year, ,he entered the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, taking the course in architecture, but leaving after one year of study, in order to begin the practice of his profession.

At one time he was the proprietor of the Columbian Hotel in Saratoga Springs, but in the main he devoted himself to the practice of his profession. Of late years he has lived a retired life, spending his summers in Saratoga Springs and his winters at Altamonte Springs, Fla. This had been his custom for the last twenty-five years. He wrote: "I am passionately fond of shooting, which I follow until the first of May. My wife and her mother, who is ninety years of age, are the direct descendants of Jonathan Edwards. The Edwards coat of arms hangs on the inner wall." This was written several years ago. Mr. Briggs' death was unexpected. He had been in the best of health, and had been on a hunting trip during the previous week. Only the day before his death he had been motoring for pleasure. He was taken suddenly ill at his home in Saratoga Springs about midnight on October 30, 1922, and died about 3.30 on the next morning.

He married, April 13, 1886, Miss Alice May Hall of Saratoga Springs, N. Y. Mrs. Briggs died several years ago. It is reported that Mr. Briggs left a considerable estate. He had no children, but is survived by nieces and nephews in New York city, and Springfield, Mass.

Lucian Haywood Richardson was born in Madison, Ind., January 30. 1852. He was the son of Charles and Mary Chase, (West) Richardson. His father was a blacksmith. The boy attended the public schools of Madison until his graduation from the high school in 1868. He then entered Hanover College at Hanover, Ind., spending two years and a half there. He joined the class of 1873 at Dartmouth at the beginning of the junior year, graduating with the class with Phi Beta rank. He had a dissertation on the Commencement program, speaking on "The Abuse of Public Libraries." He was a member of Psi Upsilon fraternity.

The fall after graduation he entered the law school of Columbia University, graduating therefrom in May, 1875. Returning West, he began the practice of law in Indianapolis, Ind., as junior member of the firm of Richardson and Richardson, his brother George being the senior member of the firm. On the death of his brother in December, 1877, he continued practice for a time alone, and after January 1, 1879, took into partnership Charles A. Dryer. On March 1, 1880, he was appointed assistant United States attorney for Indiana, and held the office until July 1, 1880, when serious illness compelled him to resign. A severe attack of pneumonia was followed by a series of hemorrhages, so that for several weeks he lived in the pine woods of Wisconsin. Forbidden by his physician to engage in office work because of its confinement, he secured, December 1, 1881, the position of special examiner of pension offices. This required much travel, and enabled him to spend his summers North and the winters South. In 1887 he resigned this position, and resided in St. Paul, Minn., for a year. Obliged on account of his .health to give up the profession of law, he devoted the remainder of his life to business, in which his legal knowledge was of great service. He removed to Denver, Colo., where he has since resided, as manager of the Denver office of the Middlesex Banking Company of Middletown, Conn., whose business is that of loans and real estate.

On March 31, 1922, while seated at his desk in the office, he was seized with a severe attack of myocarditis. Half an hour later two men who called on business found him there helpless, and had him taken to his home. From this attack he never fully recovered. In June he was able to go to his quiet mountain home at Evergreen, Colo., remaining there until early fall, when he returned to Denver. In his home there he died January 3, 1923.

He married, October 26, 1880, Mary L. Matthews of Madison, Ind. They had two daughters, Harriet M., who married Dr. William O. Brubacher, and Helen E., who married Howard F. Morgan. Mrs. Richardson and the daughters are living".

Mr. Richardson was during his college life not only a fine student but also a staunch friend and interested in college activities. College friendships meant to him a large part of the life there. He took the long trip from Denver to attend the class reunion in 1913, and was planning, if physically able to do so, to be present in June next at the semicentennial class reunion. He was for almost fifty years a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. He was ever a frank, hearty, companionable man, greatly beloved by his friends, and honored by all for his sturdy adherence to all that was fine and true.

CLASS OF 1874

Louis Clinton Merrill died at his home in Concord, N. H., January 23, 1923, of pneumonia, after a short illness.

The son of Henry C. and Diantha (Patten) Merrill, he was born in Manchester, N. H., January 12, 1853, and fitted for the Chandler Scientific Department at Manchester High School. He entered the class at the beginning of sophomore year. He was a member of the Phi Zeta Mu fraternity, now Sigma Chi.

After graduation he was for about two years engaged in civil' engineering in Somerville and Arlington, Mass. He was then associated with his father in the grocery business in Manchester until July, 1877, when he transferred his business interests to hardware. In 1881 he became selling agent for Stratton, Merrill, and Company, flour and grain dealers, of Concord, which position he held for about ten years. In July, 1891, he became managing partner of Eastman and Merrill, fire insurance agents, in Concord, and continued in that line of business until his death.

In May, 1884, he was commissioned captain in the New Hampshire National Guard, and from 1884 to 1889 was brigade quartermaster. From 1907 to 1909, ,he commanded the Amoskeag Veterans, with the rank of major.

Major Merrill was a member of the Wonolancet Club and the Sons of the American Revolution, and was actively connected with the Concord Chamber of Commerce. He was a member and a constant attendant of the Unitarian church.

June 29, 1888, he was married to Fanny, daughter of Levi C. Wadleigh, who died March 8, 1904. He was married October 12, 1909, to Elizabeth S. Conner, who survives. He has one son, Henry Wadleigh Morrill .'13,

CLASS OF 1880

Frederick Webster Sturdivant died at St. Vincent's Hospital, Toledo, Ohio, August 10, 1922, from a general breaking down of the vital powers.

The son of Alvan and Jane Plummer (Webster) Sturdivant, he was born in Cumberland, Me., February 1, 1854. He fitted for the sophomore year in college at Phillips Academy, Exeter, and entered Dartmouth in the fall of 1877. He was a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon.

For the first three years after graduation he was engaged in teaching at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., and Freehold, N. J., and in the Law-renceville School, reading law to some extent meanwhile. He then went to Defiance, Ohio,, and was a law student in the offices of Henry Newbegin and Latty and Peaslee. In June, 1884, he was admitted to the bar, and for three years he was connected with the law offices of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. In 1888. he removed to Portsmouth, Ohio, and engaged in general practice. In 1892 he removed to Toledo, and taught mathematics for a year in the Central High School. He then returned to law practice, and was actively engaged in it until two years before his death, when his health failed.

July 1, 1885, Mr. Sturdivant was married to Alice Louise, daughter of Julius W. and Amelia E. (Howland) Peterson of Defiance, Ohio, who survives him, with their two sons, Webster H., of Toledo, and Frederick A., of California.

CLASS OF 1894

Sherman Everett Burroughs died suddenly in Washington, D. C., January 27, 1923, of influenza.

He was born in Dunbarton, N. H„ February 6, 1870, his parents being John H., and Helen M. (Baker) Burroughs.

He fitted at Concord High School. In college he won the second Thayer mathematical prize in sophomore year, and an oratorical prize in senior year. He took honors in Greek and philosophy, and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.

In the summer after graduation he began the study of law in the office of Sargent and Hollis of Concord. December 1, 1894, he went to Washington as private secretary for Henry M. Baker (Dartmouth '63), member of Congress from New Hampshire, and held that position until the expiration of Mr. Baker's term of office in 1897. He continued his law studies at Columbian (now George Washington) University, graduating as LL.B. in 1896, and as LL.M. in 1897. He then began practice at Manchester, N. H., and continued in successful practice until he took his seat as representative in Congress from the First District of New Hampshire in 1917. He had previously been a member of the state House of Representatives in 1901, a member of the State Board of Equalization in 1909-10, and chairman of the State Board of Charities and Correction.

Mr. Burroughs was a member of the Children's Aid and Protective Association; an official of Grace Episcopal church; trustee of the New Hampshire Orphans' Home; director of the Manchester Animal Rescue League; a member" of the Derryfield and Country Clubs; and a Mason.

April 21, 1898, he was married to Helen Sophie Phillips of Washington, who survives him, with four sons.

CLASS OF 1921

Theodore Milton Seidell was born in Norfolk, Va., November 22, 1897, his parents being William H., and Georgie A. (Thorough-good) Selden. His early education was obtained in the Norfolk public schools and at Norfolk Mission College, from which he was graduated in 1914.

A year later, in the fall of 1915, he entered Lincoln University, Pennsylvania. Here he maintained the rank of an honor student through his course, and at the same time distinguished himself as a debater, an orator, and an instructor. He was also proficient in music, playing the pipe organ with skill. During the fall of 1918 he was a very acceptable officer in the S. A. T. C. During his senior year he was manager of the baseball team, president of the student council, and champion checker-player of the college. He was graduated from Lincoln magna cum laude in 1919. He was the winner of several prizes, the most important being the Annie Louise Finney prize, given to the member of each graduating class who has best exemplified the ideals of Lincoln University during his college days.

He returned to Lincoln in the fall of 1919 as instructor in physics and chemistry, mean-while working for the, degree of Master of Arts. During this year he was instrumental in organizing the Delta Rho Forensic Society and continued his work as college organist. In the fall of 1920 he entered the senior class at Dartmouth. Here he won a place on the debating team and took such a rank in scholarship that he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. Probably his record in scholarship was higher than that of any other member of the Negro race who has been a member of Dartmouth College.

In the fall of 1921 he entered the law school of the University of Pennsylvania, and successfully completed the year's work there. To obtain funds for another year's work, he entered the employ of the Pullman Car Company as porter, and was killed in a railway wreck at Winslow Junction, Pa., on the Reading Railroad, on the night of July 3, 1922. His body was identified by his Phi Beta Kappa key, inscribed with his name and his college and class.

Selden had been since boyhood an active member of the First Baptist church of Norfolk.