JAMES RUSSELL TRUMBULL, a much respected resident of Northampton, has been identified with the industrial, educational, and literary interests of this section of Hampshire County for many years, and has ably assisted in maintaining and advancing its welfare. He is a native of this county, born in Haydenville, Williamsburg, December 21, 1825, a son of Guy and Clarissa (Nash) Trumbull.

The Trumbulls were well-known manufacturers of Connecticut during the last part of the eighteenth century. David Trumbull, the grandfather of James Russell Trumbull, was a resident of Windsor for many years.  His last days were spent at his home in East Windsor, where his death occurred in January, 1800, at the age of fifty-five years. He married Sarah Harper, by whom he had eight children, of whom seven grew to maturity, and married, the most of them having large families, one son rearing nine children.

Guy Trumbull, born in East Windsor, Conn., July 6, 1786, grew to manhood in his native State, coming to this county when a young man. He was a member of the firm of Hayden, Trumbull & Co., manufacturers of machinery, looms, etc. On June 20, 1822, he was married to Clarissa Nash, of Williamsburg, a daughter of a prominent farmer, John Nash, and his wife, Martha (Little) Nash. Three children were born to them, namely: Julia Shepherd, who was wife of E. L. Miller, and died in 1892, aged sixty-nine years; James Russell, the subject of this sketch; and Martha Howard, a maiden lady, living at South Hadley Falls. The father, who was a man of exceedingly good habits and reputation and an esteemed citizen, died before reaching the noon-tide of life, in Haydenville, June 19, 1828. His widow survived him, departing this life July 26, 1873, at the venerable age of fourscore years.

The subject of this sketch was educated in the common schools. When a lad of seventeen years, he was apprenticed to the printer's trade, entering the office of the Hampshire Gazette, and serving his three years' time under William A. Hawley. He became an expert compositor, and finally was made foreman of the office, remaining in that position until 1847. Then he bought from Homer A. Cooke the Hampshire and Franklin Express, which was established in 1844 by J. S. and C. Adams, and subsequently came into the hands of Samuel Nash, the predecessor of Mr.  Cooke. Mr. Trumbull became printer and editor of it in 1849. He subsequently became editor of the Hampshire Gazette, published by Hopkins, Bridgeman & Co., and was serving in that capacity until January 1, 1858, when Thomas Hale, of Windsor, Vt., became half-owner and the editor. The following October Mr. Trumbull purchased the entire plant, merging the Gazette and the Northampton Courier into one publication, under the name of the Gazette and Courier, thenceforth jointly edited by Trumbull & Gere. The firm did a good paying business until January 1, 1877, when the senior partner sold his interest in the paper to Mr. Gere. Since that time Mr.  Trumbull, who has been somewhat of an invalid, has lived in retirement at his pleasant home,   45  Prospect Street,  which he built twenty-seven years ago.

On November 6, 1848, Mr. Trumbull married Harriet T. Kingsley, of Northampton.  Her father, Edwin Kingsley, was by occupation a blacksmith, and died in 1874, aged eighty-two years. He married Belinda Kingsbury, who was born in Brattleboro, Vt., in 1804, and died in Northampton in 1886.  She bore her husband eight children, six of whom grew to maturity.

Mr. Trumbull has always been identified with the Republican party, and has held public offices in the town and city. He was chosen City Treasurer in 1884, and filled that office for six years, declining a re-nomination in 1889. For over thirty years he was a valued member of the Library Committee, and is now serving as one of the Trustees of the Forbes Library, having been elected in 1894. He was one of the Board of Almoners for the Whiting Street Fund, and was for many years clerk of the old Parish Church. He still devotes a portion of his time to literary pursuits. Having, in connection with George W. Hubbard, purchased the Judd manuscript, he has been working for the past eighteen years on the history of Northampton, which, no doubt, will be a valuable accession to our historical records.

CHARLES H. UPSON, a prominent citizen of Easthampton, who has the general superintendence of the extensive buildings of the Williston Seminary, was born in Northampton in 1848, son of Justus and Caroline (Smith) Upson. His father was a native of Southington, Conn., born in 1803; and his mother was a native of Ludlow, Mass. His grandfather, Thomas Upson, was also a native of Connecticut, born about 1757. He gained a livelihood by tilling the soil, and died on his farm at the age of eighty-three.   Thomas Upson reared two sons and two daughters. One of the former, Edward Upson, was a well-known shipbuilder at Kennebunkport, Me. He also lived to a good age, dying in his seventieth year. He reared three sons and two daughters.  Justus Upson, son of Thomas Upson and father of Charles H., was a carpenter, and followed his trade during the greater part of his life. In 1849 he removed from Northampton to Easthampton, and there spent the rest of his days. He died at the home of his son, Charles H., in 1886, being then eighty-three years of age. His wife, to whom he was united in 1835, was the daughter of Martin Smith, of Ludlow, Mass. By her first husband, Mr. Chapin, she had one son, Stephen Chapin, now a resident of Springfield and a conductor on the Boston & Albany Railroad. Of her union with Mr. Upson the following children were born: Emma, widow of Ralph Wolcott, residing in Amherst; Lydia, who married Calvin Strong, and died in Easthampton in 1885, at the age of forty-two; Julia, wife of William Miller, of Torrington, Conn.; Alvin, who met his death through an accident in 1858, when a boy of sixteen; and Charles H., the subject of this sketch. Mrs. Upson died in 1882. Mr.  Upson was a member of the Congregational church, to which his wife also belonged. 

Charles H. Upson received a good common-school education in Easthampton, and finished his studies at Williston Seminary. He learned the carpenter's trade, and worked for E. R. Bosworth, a prominent builder of Easthampton, till 1883. He was then appointed superintendent of the Williston Seminary buildings, a position which he has efficiently filled up to the present time. This school is one of the largest institutions of the kind in the State. It was established with a generous endowment by Samuel Williston in 1841, and four large brick buildings were built between 1841 and 1865. In 1892 the large hotel near by, a frame structure, was purchased, and added to the school property; and the old Williston home, now occupied by the principal of the school, Dr. Gallagher, is also a part of the estate. The property comprises six acres of ground, and is situated in the heart of the city. Mr. Upson's position is no sinecure, as on him devolves the care of the whole estate, the responsibility of making needed repairs, and the superintendence of all work necessary to keep the buildings and grounds in good condition.

Mr. Upson was united in marriage June 1, 1871, to Mary M., daughter of Benjamin and Catherine (Foote) Dingman, of Stockbridge, Mass. Mr. Dingman and his wife are now nearly eighty years of age. They reared four daughters and one son. Mr. and Mrs. Upson are the parents of two children, namely: Grace F., wife of Henry G. Camp, teller in the Pyncheon Bank in Springfield; and Alvin L., a student in the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy, and assistant pharmacist in the Boston City Hospital.

In politics Mr. Upson is a Republican.  He takes an active part in the town government, and is now serving his fifth year as Selectman. In Masonic circles he is prominent, and is at present Past Master of Ionic Lodge of Easthampton. He has a handsome home at 3 Summer Street, where he has resided since 1886.

GEORGE DEXTER UTLEY, a highly respected citizen of Ware, Mass., formerly a successful lumber and coal dealer, but now retired from active business life, was born in Hardwick, Worcester County, on March 27, 1824, son of Oren and Hannah (Dexter) Utley. His father was a native of Wilbraham, Hampden County, born on November 30, 1787.

His grandfather, James Utley, had three brothers; and all were men of large stature, averaging six feet or over in height and weighing about two hundred pounds each. They were natives of Connecticut; and Grandfather Utley came thence to Wilbraham, Mass., where he met and married Miss Mary Sessions.    He settled in Hardwick, where he purchased a farm on which there was only a small clearing that was reached by bridle paths through the forest. He there became an extensive and successful agriculturist. He died March 15, 1812, at about fifty years of age, and his wife in 1843, in the eighty-second year of her age, they having reared a family of three sons and two daughters. Oren Utley also chose the vocation of a farmer, in which he met with good success. He was first married about 1810, to Miss Hannah Dexter, of Royalston, Mass., who bore him seven children, all of whom, with the exception of James D., who died February 2, 1818, at two years of age, lived to years of discretion. The record is as follows: Maria, Mrs. Sibley, died in Ware in 1854, at thirty-nine years of age, leaving two children; Louisa, who married John Lewis, of Athol, Mass., died in 1879, at sixty-three years of age, leaving two daughters; John Utley, whose death occurred in his seventy-first year, on February 4,   1890, was for fifty years a large produce dealer in Boston ; Rebecca is the widow of Zelotus Spooner, of Greenwich; George D. is further mentioned below; and Mary M. died December 6, 1851, at twenty-five years of age. After their mother's death their father married Miss Susan Adams, of Brookfield, Mass., by whom he had two sons and a daughter, namely: Hannah, whose death occurred in her eighteenth year; Henry, who died at twenty-one years of age; and James, born in 1836, who is a successful farmer in New Braintree, Mass. The sons have recently placed a beautiful monument in the Hardwick cemetery in memory of the deceased.

George Dexter Utley grew to manhood on his father's farm, acquiring a good practical education in the district school, and assisting his father in the farm work until he was twenty-one years of age.    He then started out for himself, having as capital his clothes and twenty-five cents in money; but he possessed a good business ability, and during his home life had acquired habits of industry. His first position was that of manager and salesman in a country store in Greenwich village, where he remained eight months, receiving twelve dollars and a half per month, which was at that time considered good wages. He next went to work in the fork and rake shop of Butterfield & Sibley, the latter a brother-in-law, and was soon after made a partner and general manager of the business, having charge of the marketing of their products; and four years later he became the owner. He subsequently engaged in the grist-mill business for two years, and in 1857 moved to Southbridge, Mass., where he conducted an extensive teaming business, employing forty horses; and he also kept a hotel and a livery stable. Seven years later he re-moved to Athol, where be was engaged in hotel-keeping for a year. He then came to Ware, and again took up teaming, owning as many as fifty horses. He has also been a successful dealer in lumber and coal, and when he retired from an active mercantile life he was succeeded in this business by his son George E.  On October 27, 1852, Mr. Utley was united in marriage with Jane M. Emerson, a native of Winchester, and daughter of Daniel Ingalls and Mary S. (Oldham) Emerson. They have an interesting family of four children, three sons and a daughter, namely: Gertrude Jane, who married A. B. Goodier, of Southbridge, Mass., and has a son and daughter; George E.  Utley, residing in Ware, who married Miss Sarah Eudora Sheldon, and has one son living, Horace Ingalls Utley, and has buried a daughter named Gertrude J. ; Henry A. Utley, who is successfully engaged in the steam laundry business in Amherst, Mass., is married, and has two sons - Lewis S. and Henry Lester, a daughter Louise having died in childhood; Charles Dexter Utley, also living in Amherst, who married Miss Alice L. Smith, and has one daughter, Grace.

Mr. Utley has been a lifelong Republican, but has declined to serve in any official capacity. He and his estimable wife reside at their attractive home at 58 Church Street, where they have lived since April 15, 1865, enjoying the esteem and good will of a large circle of friends and acquaintances.

HORACE H. VAUGHN is a prosperous farmer of Greenwich.  He was born in Prescott, Mass., November 15, 1832, and is a son of Josiah and Susan (Shaw) Vaughn. His grandfather, Nathan Vaughn, a native of Middleboro, Mass., was an early settler in Prescott. He was a sturdy pioneer and a successful farmer, and lived to the age of eighty years. His wife, whose maiden name was Mary Fry, bore him nine children, all of whom became heads of families. She also attained an advanced age before she died.  Both husband and wife were members of the Baptist church.

Josiah Vaughn, Mr. Vaughn's father, was born in the place now called Prescott, October 15, 1791. He was a Baptist minister during his early manhood, but later engaged in agriculture. He owned a farm of one hundred acres in Prescott, which he managed successfully. An industrious man and an earnest Christian worker, he was much respected by his neighbors. He was a member of the Masonic Order for over forty years, and reached a high degree in the fraternity. His wife, Susan (Shaw) Vaughn, who was born in Middleboro, Mass., September 2, 1791, made him the father of eleven children, of whom three are living, namely: Chloe F., who is now Mrs. Russell, of Athol, Mass.: Hollis, a resident of Wendell; and Horace H., the subject of this sketch, who is the youngest.  The others were: Josiah N., Susan L., Nathan, Lois, Mary, John W., Rhoda P., and Laura, all of whom, except the last two, reached maturity before they died. Both parents lived to the age of seventy-four years, and but four hours intervened between their deaths.

Horace H. Vaughn passed his boyhood and youth in Prescott, and was brought up to a practical knowledge of farming. He commenced his education in the district schools.  After completing his studies at the New Salem Academy, he taught school for some time. In April, 1861, he settled in Greenwich, where, with the exception of one year, he has since resided.   He purchased his present farm of one hundred and nine acres in 1869, and for the past twenty-six years has conducted general farming, making a specialty of raising poultry, with satisfactory results.  He has worked industriously and energetically, and his present prosperity is fully merited. In politics he is a Prohibitionist, and he has been prominent in the order of Good Templars.

On February 5, 1861, Mr. Vaughn was united in marriage to Lydia Locke. She was born in Wendell, Mass., January 11, 1837.  Her parents were Ephraim and Nancy Locke.  The father was a native of Wendell; and the mother was born in Dover, Vt. Ephraim Locke followed agriculture as an occupation during his entire life, and was known as a prosperous farmer and an upright citizen.  He lived to the age of seventy-one years, and his wife to the age of seventy-two.

Mr. and Mrs. Vaughn have one daughter, Jennie L., who was born in Greenwich, January 9, 1862. She married Henry I. Glazier, and they reside with Mr. Vaughn. Mr.  Glazier is engaged in lumbering in connection with farming, and is well known as an active and industrious man. Mr. and Mrs. Glazier have three children; namely, Leta Mabel, Elsie L., and Earl H.

Mr. Vaughn and his wife are active members of the Methodist Episcopal church. He has been superintendent and teacher of the Sunday-school for forty years, and is at the present time one of the Stewards.

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