The status of this page is SOLIDIFYING.
Rev. Brainard Bradley Cutler gave the Welcome at the Congregational Church’s centennial celebration in 1874.
- born March 4, 1803
- parents were Obed Cutler, b. in Sturbridge, and Azuba (Shepherd) Cutler, b. in Greensboro, VT
- according to the Cutler family genealogy, Obed was b. in Sturbridge in 1772 and “accompanied his father to Orleans county, Vt., in 1789, settling in Greensboro” (p. 390) – Obed’s first wife, Azuba, was the daughter of Ashbell Shepard, another 1789 Greensboro settler (presumably these were the first white settlers in the town – “They were among the members who organized the First Congregational church in the town and were influential members.” p. 390 – Obed’s second wife was Esther (Carlton) Johnson of Williston, Vt. – “He was engaged with his father on the farm and in the carding machine.” (p. 390) – Obed d. 1813
- Obed’s children born in Greensboro:
- Moses Chamberlain Cutler (1794-1856)
- Marilla (1796-1861)
- Susan (1798-?)
- Maria (1800-1847)
- Nathan (1801-1849)
- Brainard (1803-1893)
- Azuba (1806-at least 1899)
- Orrin (1810-at least 1899)
- Esther (1812-?)
- Brainard married his second wife, Phoebe, in 1868 in Heath
- Brainard d. of old age on March 16, 1893 at the age of 90 – he was living in Heath and was buried there, but died in Whatley
- here’s the info from FindaGrave.com: The son of Obed & Azubah (Shephard) Cutler. Married Emma Hobart on 9/17/1827, (she died 7/7/1867. He married Mrs. Phoebe Harris on 1/1/1868. He had four children by his first wife:
1. Edward Payson (10/3/1833 – 10/9/1833
2. Edward Payson (11/5/1835 – 10/17/1847)
3. Emma Tryphena (10/26/1838 – 4/16/1841)
4. Charles Brainard (6/24/1842 – 2/29/1908)
5. Emma Tryphena (3/3/1844 – 6/5/1881)
biographical sketch from The Congregational Quarterly, 1864, section on “Congregational Churches in Orleans County, Vt.” (p. 238): “Rev. Brainerd Bradley Cutler, son of Obed and Azuba (Sheperd) Cutler, was born March 4, 1803. His youth and early manhood were spent upon the farm, and he acquired only a common school education. Becoming pious at the age of twenty-two, he turned his attention to the ministry, and having studied three years under the direction of his pastor, he was licensed by the Orleans Association, August 21, 1831. He preached as a home missionary in Eden, Stowe, Wolcott, and Richmond; and was ordained at Richmond as an Evangelist, August 21, 1835. Rev. John Wheeler, D.D., preached the sermon. His ministry at Richmond continued two or three years. He preached at Essex more than three years, and nearly seventy were added to the church. He had a short but successfully ministry at St. Albans Bay, where seventy were added to the church in a single year. From that place he went to Lawrenceville, N.Y., where he was installed as pastor in June, 1845. Rev. B.H. Burrage preached the sermon. He was dismissed February 7, 1854. Since then he has been stated supply in North Lawrence, Massena, Raymondville, So. Canton, Albion, and Moira
He married, Sept. 17, 1827, Emma A. Stevens, a native of Groton, Mass.”
here’s a link to A Cutler Memorial and Genealogical History – this was compiled by Nahum Sawin Cutler of Greenfield, Mass. in 1889, which suggests a possible connection with Wendell if Nahum was related to Thomas Sawin, Wendell’s self-appointed chronicler
from 1870 US Census, population and agricultural schedules:
- Vermont-born B.B. Cutler is 67
- wife is Phoebe C. Cutler, 59, b. in Mass.
- children are Charles B. Cutler, 26, b. in Vermont, travel agent and Emma T. Cutler, 24, dressmaker, born in New York
- also in household: Mary Stevens, 80, b. in Mass. (mother of his first wife, Emma Stevens)
- Cutler’s land was worth $1200 and his personal property $125
- he has no agricultural equipment value listed and no agricultural wages paid
- owned one horse and one milk cow, for a total value of $125 (on the low side for the town)
- he grew 18 bushels of corn, 10 bushels of potatoes, and made one ton of hay, all very low compared with other farmers
- total value of the farm’s produce was $42, also very low, suggesting he was farming mostly for his own household use and perhaps selling a little of what he grew
- the household is listed right before the Poor Farm administered by Nicholas Laux (1871 Beers map shows parsonage and alms house next to each other on Montague Road)
here’s a photo of Rev. Cutler’s son Charles Brainard Cutler (the travel agent) and info from FindaGrave.com:
“Birth: Jun. 24, 1842
Massachusetts, USA
Death: Feb. 29, 1908
Dayton
Montgomery County
Ohio, USA
Charles was the son of Rev. Brainard Bradley Cutler of Heath, MA. He married Abbie Louise Dickinson (b.4/6/1848, d.12/8/1892) on 1/14/1875 in Heath, MA. They had six children: Arthur Howard, Emma Louisa, Frank Stevens, Obed Dickinson, Lelia May, and one un-named infant son, stillborn. After Abbie’s death, Charles married again, (probably on 1/1/1894), the second wife’s name is unknown.” [see below]
More on Charles B. Cutler:
In the 1860 U.S. Census he’s living with another 18-year-old in Worcester and working as a clerk (in a store? or office?).
his death record (1908) says he was a Civil War Veteran who enlisted Dec. 21, 1861 in Malone, NY with the 60th NY Infantry, where he remained a private – he was discharged Feb. 4, 1863 in Harpers Ferry, VA for reasons of “Disability”: defective hearing, right ear, claims chronic rheumatism and occasional attacks of lumbago, chronic bronchitis, vaccinated.
In the 1865 Mass. Census he’s working as a clerk and living in Boston’s Ward 8 in what seems to be a boardinghouse, along with a number of other young clerks, seamstresses, dressmakers, and one “canvasser”
marriage records show Charles B. Cutler of Heath, Mass. “manufacturer,” married Emma E. Foster, “operative,” of Lowell, Mass. on Jan. 1, 1894 in Lowell – his second marriage, her first
In the 1900 U.S. Census he’s shown working as a house painter and living on West Adams Street in Lowell, Mass., with his wife Emma E. F. Cutler (52) and Charles’s youngest daughter Lelia (7)
from U.S. National Homes for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers records (Dayton, Central Branch): “Contracted [i.e. for veterans pension/benefits?] Oct. 16, 1902, Lowell, Mass.” – he’s described as 5’6″, light complexion, gray eyes, gray hair, Protestant, occupation “painter,” and his “residence prior to discharge [from hospital?]” as Grand Junction, CO – his pension rate is listed as $12 and he was “admitted to C.B. Nov. 4, 1904” and “reported died at his residence Dayton Ohio A.W.O.L. from hospital,” looks like Feb. 27, 1905 (different from FindaGrave date above)
from the Cutler Memorial and Genealogical History:
Eastman’s Commercial College, which Charles attended, was founded in 1859 in Poughkeepsie, NY by George Washington Eastman, father of George Eastman who founded Eastman-Kokak (here’s a bit about the family). The Eastmans owned a 10-acre farm in Waterville, NY from 1849 to 1860.
There were branches of Eastman’s Commercial College in various places, it seems. Here’s a handbill for one in St. Louis (from the Duke University Library digital collections):
