Raymond J. Pierce, Pg 319-320 – scanned document
RAYMOND J. PIERCE was a highly esteemed resident of Brookline. Born in Lyndeboro, N. H., July 21, 1833, he was a son of James and Lucy (Wheeler) Pierce. His grandfather, Eleazar Pierce, was a prosperous farmer and lifelong resident of Hollis, N.H. James Pierce, who was born in Hollis, September 1799, in his young manhood came to Brookline, where he followed the cooper’s trade in connection with farming, and resided for the rest of his life. A man of admirable character, he stood high in the esteem of the community. In politics he acted with the Democratic party. At his death, which occurred May 5, 1884, he was eighty-five years old. His wife, Lucy, whom he married July 31, 1828, was born March 2, 1805, daughter of Ebenezer Wheeler, of Brookline. She became the mother of four children, of whom two are living, namely: Cornelia, who is now the widow of James T. Willoby, late of Hollis, and has two children Fred and Elsie; and Jennie, the wife of Bryant Wallace, of Nashua, N, H. Mrs. James Pierce died July 12, 1885, aged eighty years. She was a member of the Congregational church.
Raymond J, Pierce was educated in the schools of Lyndeboro and Brookline. After leaving school he learned the trade of a cooper, and subsequently followed it throughout the rest of his life. On April 8, 1858, he wedded Catherine A. Burge, who survives him. She was born in Brookline, December 28, 1833, daughter of John and Philomela (Bennett) Burgee. [An account of her ancestry will be found in the biography of Payson Burgee] Mrs. Pierce is the mother of four children, born as follows: Nellie K., April 26, 1859; Emma A., September 10, 1860; Edward R., June 28, 1863; and Effa A., July 7, 1866.
Nellie K. Pierce married Arthur Winslow, a mason of Milford, N.H., and has had five children, namely: Wallace A., born August 29, 1885, who died May 14, 1889; Walter C., born in Milford, September 7, 1886; Warren A., born June 29, 1881; Waldo E., born September 7, 1893; and Marion A. born October 15, 1895. Emma A. Pierce,, who is the wife of George G. Clarke, of Townsend, Mass., has four children, born as follows: Adabelle P., in Brookline, October 26, 1881; Helen G., in Brookline, September 7, 1883 ; Edith L, also in Brookline, July 19, 1885; and Arline C., in Townsend, June 1896. Effa A. Pierce married Henry C. Hall, a native of Brookline, now a carpenter in Leominster, Mass. Her children were: Raymond H., born in Leominster, December 22, 1889, who died June 16, 1896; and Robert W., also a native of Leominster, born January 10, 1894, who died June 26, 1896, of diphtheria. Edward R. Pierce is a prosperous farmer of Brookline and a prominent member of the grange. Mr. Raymond J. Pierce died at his home in this town, February 27, 1869, aged thirty-five years. Possessed of many manly characteristics, he was much esteemed in the community, and his untimely death was generally deplored. In politics he was a Republican, and he was a member of the Congregational church. Mrs. Pierce, who survives her husband, is also a member of the Congregational church, and has the sincere respect of all who enjoy the privilege of her acquaintance.