New Hampshire Daughters of the American Revolution

Real Daughters

New Hampshire Recognizes 28 Women

All Daughters of the American Revolution are descended from Revolutionary War patriots and soldiers. Imagine, though, joining the DAR through the Revolutionary War service of your own father. This was the distinct privilege of a Real Daughter. Not to be confused with the "daughter of a Revolutionary war soldier or patriot," a Real Daughter was distinguished because she was a DAR member as well as the actual daughter of a soldier or patriot. In the early years of the National Society, a DAR chapter who could name one or more of the 767 Real Daughters among its members was extremely proud of this living link to the American Revolution.

DAR hosts an online exhibition to celebrate the lives and accomplishments of this very special group of women. It tells the story of the Real Daughters Committee formed during the DAR's early days for the purpose of encouraging Real Daughters to join the DAR and to care for those who needed assistance. This exhibition highlights the stories of some of the most interesting Real Daughters. If you are interested in learning more about Real Daughters, you can purchase the book, My Father Was a Soldier, from the DAR store.

New Hampshire is proud to recognize twenty-eight Real Daughters.

Vienna Emily Piper Allen was born in Tuftonboro, New Hampshire, on January 16, 1821, to John Piper and his second wife, Anna Young Piper.

Emily and two of her sisters were Real Daughters of the Molly Reid Chapter. She married Lyman Allen of Nottingham, and they were parents to seven children. Mrs. Allen became a member of the Molly Reid Chapter in 1896. Two of her three daughters were members of the DAR, as well as two granddaughters and at least two great-granddaughters.

Mrs. Allen died in Nottingham, New Hampshire, on October 23, 1904.

Her patriot father was Corporal John Piper, who was born in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, on January 17, 1760. He served in the Continental Army with New Hampshire companies from the beginning to the end of the war. After the war he was commonly called "Adjutant Piper." He died in Tuftonboro on April 20, 1830.

Emily Thatcher Barr was born in Plainfield, New Hampshire, on July 9, 1804, to Benjamin Thatcher and Sybel Foster Thatcher. She married John Barr on April 2, 1845, and they had two children.

She joined the Molly Stark Chapter on April 5, 1899, at nearly 95 years of age. She died at the home of her daughter, Laura, in Manchester, New Hampshire, on April 18, 1899.

Her patriot father was Private Benjamin Thatcher, who was born on August 5, 1764, in Lebanon, Connecticut. He joined service in Connecticut at age 16 and served in the Continental Army in 1780 and 1781. He died in Hartland, Vermont, on May 17, 1835.

Thirzah Hazzard Kinsley Beal was born on October 6, 1810, in Springfield, New Hampshire, to James Carr Hazzard and Betsey Greeley Hazzard. She was the youngest of eleven children, and the second named Thirzah, a previous child with that name most likely having died.

She was first married to Silas Kinsley on Christmas Day, 1833. Her second husband was Colonel Selah Beal of Lyme, New Hampshire. After Selah's death, Mrs. Beal resided in Brockton, Massachusetts, where she lived with her daughter.

In 1899, she applied to the DAR and joined the Deborah Sampson Chapter, MA. She died in Lebanon, New Hampshire, on August 29, 1900, while she was visiting her sister Lucy Hazzard Emerson, also a Real Daughter. She is buried with her first husband.

Her chapter reported to the Brockton Times, "Mrs. Beal was a very pleasant woman to meet; below the minimum height with a low musical voice, wore the daintiest of lace caps and was a typical gentlewoman."

Her patriot father was Corporal James Carr Hazzard, who was born in Newbury, Massachusetts, on August 2, 1759, and died in Springfield, New Hampshire, on March 24, 1837. He served as corporal from New Hampshire with the Continental Army.

Mary Brown Wells Burdick was born in Bradford, New Hampshire, on May 7, 1804, to William and Sarah Campbell Brown. After the 1864 death of her first husband, Josiah Cutler Wells, with whom she had four children, she married Job Green Burdick.

The Colonel Samuel Ashley Chapter, Claremont, New Hampshire, voted her into their membership, made out her application, and forwarded it to the National Society at the expense of the chapter. She was accepted on June 3, 1897, and received a Real Daughter gold spoon. She enjoyed good health until shortly before she died on October 14, 1902, at the age of 98.

Her mother was of Scottish descent. Her patriot father was Private William Brown, a recruit into the Continental Army from the Town of Henniker as of July 13, 1781. He was born in Bradford, New Hampshire, on April 24, 1761 and died in Chester, Vermont, on August 6, 1855.

She told that her father was of English descent, and stated, "I well remember hearing him tell about helping to load the cannon with chain shot at the Bunker Hill Battle, and as the British soldiers came up with the charge, mowed them down like grass before the scythe."

Irene Eastman Chase was born in Conway, New Hampshire, on March 22, 1815, to Richard Eastman, Jr., and his wife Susan. Irene Eastman married Jonathan Chase on May 20, 1839, and they had three children, all of whom died young. She applied for admission the DAR on June 2, 1897, and was admitted on June 15, 1897.

The Anna Stickney Chapter holds her original application. Her gravestone gives her name as "Irena" but her application papers, in her own hand, say "Irene." She died in Conway on December 13, 1909, at the age of 94.

Her patriot father was Private Richard Eastman, Jr., born May 14, 1749, in Pembroke, New Hampshire, and died in Conway, New Hampshire, on December 6, 1826. He served in the Continental Army from New Hampshire.

Rebecca Godding Russell Crane was born April 19, 1801, in Jaffrey, New Hampshire, to John Russell and Abigail Godding Russell. On January 19, 1822, she married Ebenezer Crane, and together they raised twenty children.

She joined the Molly Stark Chapter on May 6, 1897. At the time of her death, on February 27, 1898, she was living in Dalton, New Hampshire.

Her patriot father was Private John Russell, who was born in Harvard, Massachusetts, on June 20, 1760 and died in Alstead, New Hampshire, in 1829. John Russell served as private in Captain Asa Lawrence's Company and Colonel Jonathan Reed's Regiment under General Gates from September 26, 1777, to November 9, 1777. He also served in 1780 under Captain Dix. He was discharged December 10, 1780.

Lucy Hazzard Emerson was born in Springfield, New Hampshire, on February 5, 1808, to James Carr Hazzard and Betsey Greely Hazzard. At that time, Springfield was newly settled country where there were only twenty families facing the hardships of the frontier. Betsey Emerson sowed seeds from apples her father had raised in Salisbury, New Hampshire, planting an orchard at their home at the top of Town Farm Road.

Lucy Hazzard first married Giles Stockwell, a farmer of Croydon, New Hampshire. He died in 1859. Lucy remarried Jonathan Emerson on May 4, 1868, in Concord. In the 1870 census, they were living in Lebanon, New Hampshire. Jonathan died in 1873; at which time Lucy went to live with her husband's brother, Albro, and his family in Lebanon. Mr. Emerson died on November 6, 1900. Lucy was listed in the 1900 Census as living with her niece, Marion Osgood in Lebanon, where she died on November 26 of that year at the age of 92.

She and her younger sister, Thirzah Hazzard Kinsley, joined the Deborah Sampson Chapter as Real Daughters in Brockton, Massachusetts, in the late 1890s.

Sophronia Ann Shattuck Flagg was born in Washington, New Hampshire, on June 27, 1839, to Abraham Shattuck and his third wife, Eunice Jefts Creighton Shattuck. Sophronia married Andrew Jackson Flagg on October 3, 1857, in Nashua, New Hampshire, and they lived in Mason, New Hampshire, where they raised six children.

She was accepted by the DAR National Board of Management on November 8, 1911, as a member of the Colonel Samuel Ashley Chapter of Claremont, New Hampshire. She died December 22, 1924, at the age of 85 and is buried next to her husband in Mason, New Hampshire.

Her patriot father was Private Abraham Shattuck, who was born in Pepperell, Massachusetts, on October 12, 1759. He served with several Massachusetts companies in the Continental Army from February 5, 1877, to January 28, 1780. He died on March 10, 1841, in Washington, New Hampshire.

Caroline Morrill Foster was born in Canterbury, New Hampshire, on January 13, 1816, to Asa Foster, Jr. and Sarah Morrill Foster. She was raised in a household where her father, despite his service as a youth in the Revolutionary War, believed that war was un-Christian. Her strong anti-slavery views left her ostracized by her community, and she was an early worker in the women's suffrage movement.

She did not marry, but was well educated and taught school in New Hampshire and in Erie, Pennsylvania, before returning to Canterbury to care for her aging parents. Later in life, she lived with a niece in Hartford, Connecticut, where she joined the DAR in 1897, as a member of the Ruth Wyllys Chapter. Ms. Foster transferred to the Bunton Rumford Webster Chapter. She died in Connecticut on April 15, 1910, at the age of 94 and was buried at the Canterbury Village Cemetery in Canterbury, New Hampshire.

Her patriot father, Asa Foster, Jr., joined the New Hampshire Militia as a private at age 15, on July 5, 1780. He served in the Continental Army in both New Hampshire and New York. He was discharged on October 25, 1780. He was a strong abolitionist and, though he died in 1861, he declared if he were younger he would shoulder his musket again and march in defense of this country. He was active in the militia all his life and was a full colonel by 1817.

Eliza Cooley Glines was born in Lisbon, New Hampshire, on July 27, 1820, to Aaron Cooley and Susan Parker Cooley. She married Dearborn Perley Glines on June 28, 1855, and they raised a family, including daughter Laura. Mrs. Glines joined the Molly Stark Chapter on December 2, 1897. She died in Manchester on March 20, 1903.

Her patriot father was Private Aaron Cooley, born in Peterborough, New Hampshire, on September 28, 1753. He served in the Continental Army from Massachusetts from May 15, 1777 to June 17, 1780. He died on June 7, 1834, at Landaff, New Hampshire.

Betsey Ingalls Merrill Hall was born in Chester, New Hampshire, on April 8, 1825, to Captain Simon Merrill and Mary Marstin Merrill. She married Luther Waterman Hall in 1849, and they had a family of seven children. Mrs. Hall joined the Molly Stark Chapter on October 3, 1895. She died in Chester, New Hampshire, on March 20, 1900.

Her patriot father was Second Lieutenant Simon Merril, who was born in Seabrook, New Hampshire, on April 21, 1753. He served in the Continental Army with service from New Hampshire from his enlistment in 1775 at Chester, until 1781. Along with other service he was at the Battle of Bunker Hill as an ensign. He died on April 24, 1840, in Sandown, New Hampshire.

Louisa Hoar Harris was born in Westminster, Massachusetts, on August 22, 1805, to Timothy and Lydia Hunt Hoar. She was one of eleven children. Before her marriage she was a teacher and was interested in history and politics. She married George Harris of Danvers, Massachusetts, on June 13, 1833, and they settled in Westminster where they raised two children.

Mrs. Harris was 92 when she joined the Ashuelot Chapter in 1897. Her sister, Harriet Hoar Chubb, was also a Real Daughter. Mrs. Harris died in Westminster, Massachusetts, on February 18, 1901, at the age of 96. She is buried in Westminster.

Her patriot father was Timothy Hoar, who was born in Concord, Massachusetts, March 15, 1759, and died in Westminster, Massachusetts, on January 10, 1832. He served as matross and as private with the artillery in the Continental Army from Massachusetts.

Her grave is unmarked by the DAR.

Eliza Hamilton Haslet was born in Searsmont, Maine, on December 10, 1820, to Richard and Polly Morrison Hamilton. Her maternal grandfather also served in the Revolutionary Army.

Raised in the country until the death of her father when she was 13, she was a great lover of books and poetry. As a child she read of the history of the Revolution and would discuss the battles with her father. She married George Haslet in 1838, and after a time they moved to Boston. She joined the Bromfield Street Methodist Church and it became a part of her life. A favorite quotation of hers was, "Count that day lost whose low descending sun, View from thy hand no worthy action done."

Mrs. Haslet was a charter member of the Eunice Baldwin Chapter when it was organized in 1898. As her health permitted, she was active in the chapter and contributed greatly as a bridge to the Revolutionary War itself. She spent her last years in Hillsboro, New Hampshire, with her son.

A pleasant pastime was knitting for friends; she especially enjoyed knitting toys for children and at her death on February 9, 1902, she had left one package of a plaything "for a good little boy." She was survived by two sons and three daughters.

Her patriot father was Private Richard Hamilton, who enlisted in a New Hampshire regiment of the Continental Army when he was 16 and served throughout the war.

Sarah H. Piper Hersey was born in Tuftonboro, New Hampshire, on May 20, 1813; the eighteenth child of John Piper with his wife, Ann Young Piper. She married Levi T. Hersey, and they had one son.

Sarah resided in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, until her death on March 9, 1900, at 86 years of age. She had become a member of the Molly Reid Chapter one year before her death. Her sisters, Emily Allen and Martha Mason, were also Real Daughters in the chapter.

Hannah Maria Brown Howard was born in Barrington, New Hampshire, on June, 1815, to Joseph and Jennie Brown. Hannah married John Howard and they had eleven children. She died in Milton, New Hampshire, in 1919, at the age of 104.

The information on her marriage, parents, and birth comes from her DAR application written in her own hand. In a letter dictated to a neighbor when she was 102 she said, "the Daughters of the Revolution have been more than kind. The pension I recieve (sic) makes life much easier than at first. I rec'd a Gold Spoon in token of their kindness and when I feel out of sorts and lonesome, I look at that dear spoon, and am glad to think I have that, in remembrance of my Father's Duty & time. It is about all I have in that respect and I love it, it makes me look back to those days when I had that dear old man with me." She was a member of the Mary Torr Chapter in Rochester.

Her patriot father was Private Joseph Brown who served in the Continental Army from New Hampshire companies. He was born in Barrington, New Hampshire, in 1748, and died there in 1849 at the age of 101.

Jane Grey Corbin Johnson, was born in Charleston, New Hampshire, on August 17, 1821, to Clement and Sabra Chamberlain Corbin. She married John Ruby Johnson of Unity, New Hampshire, on January 3, 1843, and they had four children.

Mrs. Johnson was invited to become a member by the founder of the Colonel Samuel Ashley Chapter in Claremont, New Hampshire. She was accepted by the National Board of Management on June 3, 1903. She died at the age of 82, on December 12, 1903.

Her patriot father was Private Clement Corbin, Jr., who served in the Revolutionary Army from 1776 to December 31, 1781, in New York, Rhode Island, and Connecticut companies. He was born in Killingly, Connecticut, on February 15, 1764, and died in Charlestown, New Hampshire, on June 2, 1853.

Louise (Louisa) Holden Lane was born in Charlestown, New Hampshire, on June 11, 1820, to Timothy and Katherine Humphrey Holden. She was married on October 20, 1840, to Mark Lane, and they raised seven children.

She was accepted into the Colonel Samuel Ashley Chapter in Claremont, New Hampshire, by the DAR National Board of Management on October 2, 1906. The Colonel Samuel Ashley Chapter holds her original papers. She died in Surry, New Hampshire, on December 24, 1908, at 88 years of age. She has several direct descendants who are or were members of the DAR.

Her patriot father was Private Timothy Holden, born in Holden, Massachusetts, in July 1760 and died in Charlestown, New Hampshire, on August 9, 1833. He served in the Continental Army from New Hampshire, having enlisted in 1770.

Martha W. Piper Mason was born in Tuftonboro, New Hampshire, on February 16, 1812; the third daughter of John Piper and Anna Young Piper to have joined the Molly Reid Chapter as a Real Daughter. She married Nathaniel Mason and they resided in Wolfeboro, about a mile from where her sister, Sarah Hersey, lived. Mrs. Mason died on December 18, 1899.

Harriet Gregg Melvin was born in Deering, New Hampshire, on July 4, 1803, to Rueben Gregg. The name of his first wife in unknown but he was later married to Mary Houston. Harriet was married to Daniel Melvin.

She was a member of the Molly Stark Chapter. At the time of her death in 1901, she lived in Troy, Kansas, with her daughter. She was buried there, in Mt. Olive Cemetery. A copper plate was unveiled by the Daughters of Atchison, Kansas. Her grave was marked by the Molly Stark Chapter of Manchester, New Hampshire.

Her patriot father was Private Rueben Gregg, who was born in 1754 in New Boston, New Hampshire. He died on August 2, 1840 in Deering, New Hampshire. He served in the Continental Army from New Hampshire under General John Stark.

Mary Janette Sherman McMurphy was born in Lisbon, New Hampshire, on February 12, 1839, to Rueben Sherman and his second wife, Ruth Smith Sherman. Janette was one of seven children.

She married Henry McMurphy on July 11, 1859, and they had four sons. She died on January 3, 1927. The Mary Butler Chapter marked her grave shortly after her death.

Her patriot father was Private Rueben Sherman who was born in Gloucester, Rhode Island, on July 22, 1763. He enlisted at Gloucester on April 17, 1779, and served in the Continental Army with Rhode Island and Vermont companies. He died in Lisbon, New Hampshire, on May 3, 1843.

Her only remembrance of her father was of his taking her in his arms and blessing her at age three.

Maria M. Wilder Ragan was born in Woodstock, Vermont, on August 3, 1817, to Jacob Wilder and Mary Wakefield Wilder. She lived in Chicago, Illinois, in 1896, at the time she applied for membership in the North Shore Chapter. Later she belonged to the Else Cilley Chapter.

She was living in Woodstock, Vermont, at the time of her death on December 28, 1908. She is buried in Durham, New Hampshire.

Her patriot father, Jacob Wilder, was born July 2, 1757, in Lancaster, Massachusetts. He died in Woodstock, Vermont, on July 19, 1848. He served in the Continental Army as private and matross.

Caroline Phoebe Hassam Randall was born in Charlestown, New Hampshire, on September 19, 1849, to Stephen Hassam, "the Boy patriot of Bunker Hill," and his second wife, Lucy Miller Hassam, whom he married at the age of 77. Caroline was born when he was 85 years old. Caroline married Eugene A. Randall on August 15, 1868, and they had two children. She was the great-aunt of Childe Hassam, the well-known American artist.

The founder of the Colonel Samuel Ashley Chapter invited Mrs. Randall to become a member of the chapter, and she was accepted by the National Society DAR on May 5, 1911. Caroline was the youngest of the 767 Real Daughters and was the next to the last surviving Real Daughter.

During her last years, she lived in Claremont, where she worked as a housekeeper. As her health failed, she was moved to a nursing home in Charlestown and was assisted by the local, state, and National DAR, who gave her all possible care. She died on July 14, 1942, just before her 93rd birthday.

Her patriot father was Stephen Hassam, born ca. 1761 in Boston, Massachusetts, whose service was as a volunteer in Boston. He died in Charlestown, New Hampshire, on February 4, 1861. In a moving reminiscence of her life dictated to a friend, she said of her father, "he told of seeing the Battle of Bunker Hill and carrying water to the wounded soldiers after the firing stopped. [He would have been ca. 14 years old]... I heard him speak of unjust taxation, referring to the war."

Malvina Jerusha Chapin Rowell was born in Newport, New Hampshire, in 1816, to Daniel Chapin. She married the Reverend George B. Rowell, and in 1842 they sailed around Cape Horn to serve as missionaries in Hawaii for over forty years.

Mrs. Rowell lived most of her adult life in Hawaii and spoke fluent Hawaiian. She was addressed by the natives as "Mother Rowell." In a brief memoir describing her life, the writer says, "her life in the Hawaiian Islands was the usual patient toilsome life of the missionary, spent in ministering to the spiritual and bodily needs of the natives around them, and in caring for her seven children."

Several years after the death of her husband in 1884, she moved to California, where she lived with a daughter until her death in 1901. She was a member of the Reprisal Chapter in Newport, New Hampshire.

Her patriot father, Private Daniel Chapin, was born January 3, 1758, in Somers, Connecticut, and died in Newport, New Hampshire, on September 14, 1831. He served as a private from Connecticut in the Continental Army.

Catherine Kendall Steele was born in Amherst, New Hampshire, on May 12, 1801, to Nathan and Sarah Kendrick Kendall. She attended public schools of Concord, New Hampshire, and taught in both public and private schools in Amherst and Concord. She married David Steele, a lawyer of Hillsborough Bridge, New Hampshire, on November 1, 1838.

She was a charter member of the Matthew Thornton Chapter in Nashua, having signed her application papers in 1896. She died at the age of 102 on January 24, 1904, and is buried at South Cemetery, in Hollis, New Hampshire. In her chapter's records is the statement, "Our Real Daughter, Mrs. Catherine Kendall Steele remembered well attending a fashionable reception in honor of Lafayette in 1824, when she was a young school teacher in Concord."

She was a first cousin to President Franklin Pierce, through her mother's family. Her patriot father was Nathan Kendall, born in Amherst on July 25, 1755. He served at the Battle of Bunker Hill and in the Continental Army as a fifer. By war's end he was a captain. He died in Hillsborough, New Hampshire, on August 11, 1846.

Isabella Litchfield Sturtevant was born in Weathersfield, Vermont, on July 4, 1810, to Caleb and Betsey Litchfield. She was a descendant of Thomas Clark, mate of the Mayflower. She was well educated and taught school for seven years until her marriage to Luther Sturtevant in September 1837.

They had two sons, one of whom was a General during the Civil War. Mrs. Sturtevant was to the last well preserved in body and mind, and retained much of the beauty of earlier years. She was tall of stature and quite erect. She possessed a keen sense of humor and was frank, generous and hopeful in word and act.

Mrs. Sturtevant was one of the early members of the DAR. Her certificate of membership was signed by the first President General, Mrs. Benjamin Harrison. A member of the Ashuelot Chapter, she was presented with a Real Daughter gold spoon by the chapter on her 86th birthday, July 4, 1896. She died in Keene, New Hampshire, on July 20, 1905, at the age of 95.

Her patriot father Caleb Litchfield, enlisted in the Revolutionary Army at age 15, and was twice discharged as being under age. He reenlisted and served in the Continental Army from Massachusetts until the end of the war as a private in the Marines on the brigantine Hazard.

Nancy Eaton Thomas was born in Fryeburg, Maine, on July 29, 1809, to William and Nancy Farrington Eaton. She married Jesse (J.T.) Thomas on January 18, 1835. She died in Chatham, New Hampshire, on October 21, 1902, at the age of 93.

She was the only descendant to use her father for admission to the NSDAR. She was admitted on November 17, 1896. The Anna Stickney Chapter holds Nancy Eaton Thomas's original application papers.

Her patriot father was Private William Eaton, who served in the Continental Army from the Fryeburg Maine District, Massachusetts.

Mary Elizabeth Fletcher Wetherbee Todd was born in Westford, Massachusetts, on May 7, 1816, to Joshua Fletcher, Jr., and Lucy Jones Fletcher. The family moved to Ashburnham, Massachusetts, when she was small. She married Deacon Joseph Wetherbee there in 1844, and they had two children. After his death, she married George Washington Todd, and they resided in Rindge; first on Todd Hill and after his death, she lived in the town center until she died.

Her obituary states, "Mrs. Todd was a truly Christian woman, doing good to all...Of unusual strength of mind, she was a constant reader... and kept up with the news of the day. The casket was draped with the blue and white flag of the order." Mrs. Todd was survived by three children. She belonged to the Prudence Wright Chapter in Massachusetts.

Her patriot father, Private Joshua Fletcher, Jr., was born in Westford, Massachusetts, on February 22, 1760. He died in Ashburnham on April 14, 1843. He served with Massachusetts companies in the Continental Army.

Harriet Louisa Snow Wait was born in Dublin, New Hampshire, on August 8, 1830, to John Snow and Caroline Perry Snow. She married Thomas Barge Wait.

Although she had been a resident of Dublin, she died at her daughter's home in West Swanzey, New Hampshire. She was survived by five children. She was buried in Dublin on October 31, 1906. She belonged to the Ashuelot Chapter.

Her patriot father was Private John Snow, who was born in Sterling, Massachusetts, on March 18, 1760. He enlisted in Westminster, Massachusetts, in September 1776. His service in the Continental Army was from Massachusetts. He died in Dublin, New Hampshire, on January 28, 1841.

Elizabeth Hazen Goss Wilcox was born in Amherst, New Hampshire, on October 11, 1806, to Ephraim Abbott Goss and Anna Bathrick Goss. She was also the granddaughter of patriot Corporal Peter Goss. She married Hazard Rodgers Wilcox on October 11, 1827, in Amherst, New Hampshire.

She was a member of the Molly Stark chapter in Manchester. At one time she and her husband lived in Palmyra, New York. She was living in Los Angeles, California, when she signed her DAR application in 1896. She died in Los Angeles on March 26, 1900, at the age of 93. She is buried a family plot in Los Angeles.

Her patriot father, Ephraim Abbot Goss was born on April 6, 1767, in Amherst and died there on November 18, 1840. He enlisted at age 15 and served as a fifer and non-commissioned officer from New Hampshire in the Continental army for three years.

Sophronia Watson York was born in Newmarket, New Hampshire, on May 27, 1820, to David Watson and Hanna Croxford Watson. She married Ezra Towle York.

Mrs. York apparently lived in Newmarket all of her life. Mrs. York joined the Granite Chapter in 1905, at the age of 85. In her later life she was found to be in poverty and great need. The Exeter Chapter minutes of April 1909, state that she was placed in a good boarding place for about $4.00 per week. The chapter and NSDAR provided with everything needed for her comfort. The Exeter Chapter members each contributed 25 cents toward her care, and her pension from New Hampshire State and National Society Daughters provided her with fuel, clothing, and medical attendance.

She died in Newmarket on January 20, 1914, at the age of 94. The Exeter Chapter sent flowers for her funeral.

Her patriot father, Private David Watson, was born in Newmarket on February 20, 1758, and died there on September 20, 1855. He enlisted on August 29, 1776, and served in 2nd New Hampshire Regiment of the Continental Army until at least 1779.

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