Katharine 6 BIGELOW
16952.1 Katharine 6 BIGELOW, dau
of Timothy 5( Timothy 4 ,Daniel
3,Joshua2, John1), and Lucy (PRESCOTT)
BIGELOW, was born 20 May 1793 at Groton, Middlesex co, MA. She
married, on 23 June 1819, Hon. Abbott Lawrence (see below), son of Samuel and Susanna
(Parker) Lawrence. He was born 16 December 1792 at Groton, and was a
partner in the importing business of his brother Amos. He became a
cotton manufacturer and mill owner, and founded the textile
town of Lawrence, MA. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives
1835-37, 1839-41, and was a member of the ways and means committee. He
helped promote the construction of Boston's waterworks, and was known
for his philanthropies including establishment of Lawrence Scientific
School of Harvard, and generous gifts to Groton. He served as minister
to Great Britain 1849-52. He died
18 August 1855 at Boston, his wife Katharine
(see note) on 21 August 1860. Both
are
buried at Auburn cemetery. Lawrence, MA was named for Abbott
Lawrence.
He was a successful merchant and manufacturer in Boston and was
repeatedly
elected a representative of the General Court. He founded and
endowed
in Harvard, the School of Science, applied to the arts, and gave
liberally
to other institutions. See also a memoir of him in the Historical
and
Genealogical Register, Vol. X, p. 297,October 1856, See also, Lawrence
Genealogy.
Children of Hon. Abbott and Katharine (Bigelow) Lawrence:
16952.11 Annie Bigelow Lawrence, (see pic below), b 28 Apr 1820; d ____ ;
m 22 Jan 1846 Benjamin Smith Rotch of New Bedford, MA; he grad Harvard
1838; 7 children; 3 known:
a. Edith Rotch b. July 30, 1847
b. Arthur Rotch b. May 13, 1850
c. Annie Rotch b. June 16, 1852
16952.12 James Lawrence, b 06 Dec 1821; d
____ ; graduated Harvard 1840; m 16 May 1852 Elizabeth Prescott,
daughter of the historian William H. Prescott, LL.D. 3 children; James was
with
the firm, A & A Lawrence & Co at 82 Milk St., Boston, MA.
16952.13 George Lawrence, died infancy.
16952.14 John Abbott Lawrence, died in
infancy.
16952.15 Timothy Bigelow Lawrence, b 22
Nov 1826; d 21 Mar 1869 Washington, D.C. age 43; graduated Harvard
1846; m 16 Mar 1854 Elizabeth Chapman, daughter of Hon. Henry Chapman
of Bucks co, PA; He was U.S. Consul at Florence then ret. to
Boston autumn 1868.
16952.16 Abbott Lawrence, b 09 Sept
1828; d 06 July 1893; graduated Harvard 1849; m 12 Apr 1853 Harriet
Paige of PA.
16952.17 Katharine
Bigelow Lawrence, b 21 Feb 1832; d ____ ; m 01 June 1854
Augustus Lowell, son of John Amory Lowell of Boston. They had three
sons and four daughters, of whom five reached maturity. Best-known
among them were:
a.Percival Lowell, b 13 Mar
1855; d 13 Nov 1916; m Constance Savage Keith; he was a prominent
astronomer and founder of Lowell Observatory.
b. Abbott Lawrence Lowell,
b 13 Dec 1856; d 06 Jan 1943; m 1879 Anna Parker Lowell; no issue. He
was
of M.I.T. and Lowell Institute, wrote with scholarship on many
subjects, was president of Harvard
College 1909-1933, and known for his educational reforms.
c. Amy (seventh child) Lowell,
b 09 Feb 1874; d 01 May 1925; unm; educated Baylor, Columbia, and
Tufts;
in literature at Brown and Yale; well-known American poet.
Sources:
Bigelow Family Genealogy Volume. I page.350;
Howe, Bigelow Family of America;
Who Was Who in America, published 1963;
Who Was Who in America, Fifth Printing;
Scribners Sons, Dictionary of America Biography, Supplement 3,
published 1973;
Parker in America; "Samuel
Lawrence, b Groton 1714; m Susannah Parker; ch. Abbot Lawrence b. 1792,
m Katharine Bigelow; res
Andover, MA"
2011 Note:
Hello Rod,
I am a direct descendant of Katharine Bigelow Lawrence (1793 -
1860). Thank you for all your research on the Bigelow
family.
Here are 2 corrections you may want to make to the info. sheet on her.
First, her name is spelled Katharine (note 2 a's), not Katherine, as
was her daughter, Katharine Bigelow Lawrence Lowell.
Second, the Lawrences are buried in MT. AUBURN CEMETERY in Cambridge,
Mass., in a lovely plot surrounded by a custom made wrought iron
fence. Mt. Auburn, founded in 1831, is a National Historic
Landmark, and was the first "garden" cemetery in the United
States. To anyone with an interest in Boston and Boston family
history, it is a treasure trove and to call it "Auburn" is, well,
unfortunate.
See http://www.mountauburn.org
Undoubtedly, numerous Boston area Bigelows are buried in Mt.
Auburn. I do hope you can make these corrections, and do visit
Mt. Auburn when you come to Boston.
Thank you.
Katherine Lawrence
Greenough < kgreenough@verizon.net >
Boston, Mass.
PS
I thought you'd like to know that Mt. Auburn Cemetery was founded by a Dr. Jacob Bigelow. He designed the
magnificent Egyptian style entrance and, working with the architect
Gridley Bryant, the Gothic Bigelow Chapel on the grounds of the
cemetery.
Janice Farnsworth, e-mail: Farns10th@aol.com from:
"Bigelow marriages to my Prescott Ancestors" of Prescott
Memorial, John Prescott/Mary Platts line, Lancaster, MA, p. 78.
Annie Bigelow Lawrence, portrait by
Chester Harding 1831
New 01/25/06:
From:
Janice Farnsworth Farns10th@aol.com
Subject: Hon. Abbott Lawrence
Source: An Historical Sketch of Groton, MA by Dr. Samuel A. Green
The name of Lawrence is one of the earliest to be found among the
Puritan settlers of MA. John Lawrence the lst emigrant of the name, was
established at Watertown as early as 1635.
Abbott Lawrence was the 5th son of Samuel and Susanna
Lawrence. He was born at Groton on the 16th day of Dec.1792. He
received the family name of his paternal grandmother, Abigail Abbott
daughter of Nehemiah
Abbott of Lexington, MA. His education, begun at the district school,
was completed at the Groton Academy of that town. His father had been
a trustee for many years. He enjoyed nothing in the way of educational
advantages beyond this, but he evidently improved the time and turned
all that he received to the best account. In 1808 he was sent to Boston
and placed as an apprentice to his elder
brother, Amos Lawrence, who had been for some years established there
as an importer of English goods. By steady application and fidelity he
prepared himself in this subordinate position for the responsibilities
which were soon to come upon him as a principal. In 1814 he was
admitted
to partnership with his brother. The times were by no means encouraging
as we were in the midst of our war with England and after a few months
the prospect seemed so unpromising that Mr. Lawrence proposed to
withdraw
from the business and enter the army.
He had previously been an active member of the New
England Guards. He applied to the War Department for a commission but
before an answer could be received the news of peace arrived and he
abandoned all
thought of a military life. He embarked in the first vessel that left
Boston
for England after the proclamation of peace to purchase goods for the
market. The passage was a short one. With characteristic ardor he was
the first
to leap on shore, being thus, perhaps, the lst American who touched
the fatherland after the war had ended.
He remained abroad for some time, on the occasion of
his first voyage to Europe, visiting the Continent, where he saw the
allied armies immediately after the battle of Waterloo.
Messrs. A. & A. Lawrence soon engaged largely in
the sale of cotton and woolen goods of domestic manufacturer, and
devoted
all their energies to foster this great branch of the national
industry.
Mr. Lawnrence's interest in the work of railroad construction in New
England was hardly less than in the establishment and extension of the
manufacturing system. He was a large subscriber to the various
railroads projected for the concentration of trade in Boston, and this
from a feeling of patriotism rather than the expectation of profit. He
was chosen to represent MA at the Harrisburg Convention in 1827 and
took a prominent part in its proceedings. In 1831 he was elected to
the Common Council of Boston but declined a re-election. In 1834 he was
elected to Congress. On taking his place he was at once put on the
Committee
of Ways and Means. On the expiration of his term his constituents
testified their sense of his service by inviting him to a public
dinner. This he
declined in a letter in which he touched on the great questions of the
day. He declined re-election to Congress, though the members of the
opposite
party gave him the remarkable assurance that, if he would consent to
stand,
no candidate should be brought against him. Two years later he
consented
to accept a second nomination and again took his seat in the House.
Shortly
after his arrival he was attacked by typhus fever, so that for some
time
small hopes were entertained of his recovery. He resigned in the
following
autumn.
In the Presidential campaign of 1840 Mr. Lawrence
took
an active part in favor of the election of General Harrison. In
September
1842, he was president of the Whig Convention which nominated Henry
Clay
for President on the part of Massachusetts.
In 1842 he was appointed by the Governor one of the
commissioners on the part of MA to negotiate a settlement of our
northeastern boundary, which had been a source of irritation for many
years between the U.S.
and England. Quoting Mr. Prescott's language: "It is not too much to
say
that but for the influence exerted by Mr. Lawrence on this occasion the
treaty if it had been arranged at all, would never have been brought
into
the shape which it now wears." Mr. Nathan Appleton in his memoir
confirms
this statement in the following words: "It is the belief of the writer,
who was then on
Congress, that Mr. Lawrence more than to any other individual is due
the successful accomplishment of the negotiation which resulted in the
important Treaty of Washington."
In July 1843 Mr. Lawrence accompanied by his wife and
daughter embarked from Boston for England in the steamer "Columbia" The
following day they were wrecked on Black Ledge, near Seal Island. After
a week's
detention on the island, they were transported to Halifax whench they
proceeded
on their voyage.
Mr. Lawrence's reputation preceded him. He was
received in England with marked attention, and the hospitality of many
distinguished and influential people was extended to him.
In 1844 he was a delegate to the Whig National
Convention and one of the electors at large for the State of MA. He was
an ardent
supporter of Henry Clay for the Presidency and deeply disappointed on
his
defeat.
In 1845 the Essex Company was organized and Mr.
Lawrence was its president and the lst and largest subscriber to its
stock. The
city of Lawrence, incorporated in 1847 was named for him.
________________________________________
Subject: Hon. Abbott Lawrence
Source: Prescott Memorial
p.ll0
Katharine Bigelow b. l793 dau of the Hon. Timothy Bigelow and
his wife, Lucy Prescott of Medford, MA. Katherine Bigelow m. June 28,
l8l9 Hon Abbott Lawrence of Boston, b Dec l6,l792. He founded and
endowed
at Harvard Univ. the School of Science. He d. l855. See
also his Memoir in the Hist. & Genealogical Register, Vol. X p.
297, Oct. l856 (see also Lawrence Genealogy)
p.154 The
Hon. Abbott Lawrence and his wife,
Catherine
Bigelow of Boston, MA had issue:
1. Annie Bigelow Lawrence b. 1820; m. 1846 Benjamin Smith Rotch of New
Bedford, MA who grad Harvard 1838
Their children:
a. Edith Rotch b. July 30, 1847
b. Arthur Rotch b. May 13, 1850
c. Annie Rotch b. June 16, 1852
2. James Lawrence b. 182l grad Harvard 1840 m. 1852 Elizabeth the only
daughter of William Prescott, LL.D (the historian) He was with the
firm, A & A
Lawrence & Co at 82 Milk St., Boston, MA.
3. George Lawrence b. and d in infancy
4. John Abbott Lawrence b. and d. in infancy
5. Timothy Bigelow Lawrence b. 1826 grad at Harvard in 1846 m. 1854
Elizabeth Chapman dau of Hon Henry Chapman of Bucks County, Pa. He was
U.S. Consul at Florence then ret. to Boston autumn 1868. He d. suddenly
at Washington, D.C. Mar 1869 age 43 years.
6. Abbott Lawrence b.1828 grad Harvard Univ 1849 m. 1853 Henrietta Page
only dau of J. W. Page of Boston, Ma.
7. Catherine Bigelow Lawrence b. 1832 m. 1854 Augustus Lowell, son of
John A. Lowell Esq. of Boston, MA who grad at Harvard 1850.
Transcribed by Janice Farnsworth
Modified - 05/03/2011
(c) Copyright 2011 Bigelow Society, Inc. All rights
reserved.
Rod Bigelow - Director
< rodbigelow@netzero.net >
Rod Bigelow (Roger Jon12 BIGELOW)
Box 13 Chazy Lake
Dannemora, N.Y. 12929
<
rodbigelow@netzero.net >
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