[Naturally, I know more about my own grandfather than about his brothers. My mother and Aunt Rose talked about him a great deal and I found more material. He lived next door (in the Superintendent's house) when I was 3 to 8 years old. It was across the street from the Church of the Good Shepherd on Main Street in South Lee. - Alice Marsh Sperl]
RICHARD GOODHIND was born in Bradninch, Devonshire, England on November 26, 1842 and moved to Dartford, Kent with his family around 1848.
[Unlike his brothers, he had not had time to serve his apprenticeship in the Phoenix mill before coming to America on March 5, 1860. However, he became the best known for his skill. The story is told that he wanted to join the army and go to Africa, so his parents sent him to his brothers in America! - AMS]
[Richard Goodhind was the only brother to fight in the Civil War. You can find out more about his service and the Massachusetts 2nd Infantry Regiment by choosing 'The Civil War' from the sidebar on the left. - TSG]
17-year-old Richard arrived after brothers Henry and Frederick, on March 5, 1860, according to his naturalization application. During that first year, he resided in Russell, in the household of his brother Frderick. On May 11, 1861, 18-year-old Richard enlisted in the Union Army from Hampshire County and was mustered into service at West Roxbury on May 25, 1861 as a private in Captain Richard Cory's Company G 2nd Regiment Mass Volunteer Infantry. He was slightly wounded by a bullet in the left knee at Chancellorsville, VA but did not leave his command. Exactly a year later, to the day, he was captured in Winchester, VA on May 25, 1862 during Bank's Retreat, was paroled and sent to Annapolis, MD. He had been a prisoner of war for 6 ½ months. He rejoined his regiment at Stafford Court House during the Battle of Fredericksburg, VA on December 13, 1862. He was promoted to Corporal at Gettysburg, PA in July 1863 for meritorious service. He received an honorable discharge at Chattanooga, TN on May 23, 1864. (Massachusetts published the soldier's service dates in a large set of volumes available in many libraries.)
His citizenship papers were issued at Superior Court held at Lenox on the fourth Monday of October 1868 (the building is now the library). At that time he was a resident of Dalton, said "born Devonshire." The Board of Registration stamped them at Holyoke on October 26, 1888 and at Lee on October 29, 1890.
[Suppose he was registering to vote? - AMS]
His "Certificate of Record", compiled from "Official and Authentic Sources" by the Soldiers and Sailors Historical and Benevolent Society and signed in Washington August 18, 1904 by M. Wallingford, historian, gives the following information: "He has been superintendent of Hurlbut Division, American Writing Paper Company 16 years (i.e. South Lee), superintendent of Zenas Crane, Jr. Company 10 years (in Dalton); of Chester Paper Company in Huntington 3 years; of Hampshire Paper Company in South Hadley Falls for 4 years; of Beebe and Holbrook in Holyoke for 2 years. Each change meant an increase in salary. He was an example of a man rising to prominence through sterling character and persistent attention to business."
Oddly enough, the above listing of his work at various Western Massachusetts papermills is a bit at odds with the accounting that Richard himself provided himself in his request to the federal governement for a pension for his Civil War service. Reconciling the two, his likely chronology of employment should work out this way:
1865-1868, an unknown papermill at Russell, MA (but very likely Chapin & Gould)(I know that for a short time before the fall of 1878, the family was in East Lee. Aunt Rose said grandmother hated it. - AMS)
1868-1880, Zenas Crane, Jr. and Byron Weston Paper Co. at Dalton, MA
1880-1884, Chester Paper Co. at Huntington, MA
1884-1887, Hampshire Paper Co. at South Hadley, MA
1887-1889, Beebe & Holbrook at Holyoke, MA
1889-1911, Hurlburt Paper Co. at South Lee, MA
(In Grandpa's day, the superintendent was his own chemist. He was noted for his colors. The story is told that a client sent him a kid glove and ordered paper the color of the glove when stretched.
Another anecdote is that the general manager in South Lee, a man named [Arthur] Eaton, used to say, "Tell me all about it, Dick, so I can talk intelligently." -AMS)
[The above anecdote is an interesting one but possibly misinterpreted. Arthur Eaton was a very knowledgeable individual in the papermaking trade and himself became the Hurlburt mill owner. This might well have been a more of a "private joke" between the two well-acquainted men. -TSG]
(Richard retired from the South Lee mill on January 1, 1911. He owned two houses in South Lee and two in Risingdale. My mother and Aunt Rose had occupied the single one with Aunt Rose's two boys before my parents' marriage. Later, Clarence took over. The other house was a three-family - 2 5's and a 6 next door. He converted the 2 5's for his own use and built a large barn, big enough to be converted later into an eight-room house. (He had a pretty little horse named "Jakey" and a seven-passenger Pope-Hartford car.) He also built a s[un]porch on the back and side of his unit. He had a very bad heart by then and could move around very little. He enjoyed retirement a very short time; he dropped dead on November 25, 1911. Flowers received for his birthday were used at his funeral. He is buried in Fairmont (sic) Cemetery on Fuller Street in Lee (walk down hill towards homes from the vault). Daughters Rose, Nettie and Alice are with him, as is my husband, Warren Sperl. - AMS)
So Richard died suddenly in his South Lee home on Saturday, November 25, 1911, about 4:30 in the afternoon, the day before he would have turned 69. The following is a copy of his obituary from the Lee newspaper, the Gleaner, for November of 1911 (thanks to Liz Banas for this item):
"Death of Richard Goodhind Friends in this village were shocked to learn of the sudden death of Richard Goodhind at South Lee Saturday afternoon. Mr. Goodhind gave up his position as Superintendent on the Hurlbut mill Jan. 1st because of ill health, being a sufferer from hardening of the arteries, but was about his house and the village and no immediate danger was anticipated. Saturday about 4:30 Mr. Goodhind went into the cellar of his residence to superintend some work in process there and as he reached the bottom stair he fell dead. The heart had stopped action, the culmination of the disease.
Superintendent of Hurlbut Mill in South Lee for Twenty Years
Richard Goodhind was born in England 69 years ago, came to this country when a young man and learned the papermaking business. He became an expert and was engaged with six paper plants in the following order - Zenas M. Crane, Byron Weston Paper Co. of Dalton, Chester Paper Co. of Huntington, Hampshire Paper Co. of South Hadley Falls, Beebe & Holbrook at Holyoke, and came to South Lee 20 years ago when the Hurlbut company was reorganized by Arthur Eaton. Mr. Goodhind was one of four brothers who came to this country and all eventually became superintendents of paper mills, and the skill of the deceased in his line of business was proverbial among the papermakers and he was widely known. Two of the brothers are left, Frank of Unionville, CT and John of Springfield.
In May 1861, Mr. Goodhind enlisted in the 2nd Mass. Regiment, Co. G, and he obtained an honorable discharge in 1864. He served on the quota of Russell, and at the time of his death was a member of Scott Bradley Grand Army post. Mr. Goodhind was twice married. His first wife was Miss Charlotte Cook and his second wife, who survives him, was Miss Mary L. Stickles. By the first marriage he had five daughters, Mrs. Charles Woodward, Mrs. Wm. Garvey, Mrs. Charles Marsh and the Misses Alice and Nettie Goodhind, by the second marriage one son, Murray Goodhind is left.
The funeral will be held this afternoon at the church of the Good Shepherd, Rev. T.H. Yardley of Stockbridge to officiate assisted by Rev. O.F. Moore, Rev. C.J. Sniffen and Chaplain Charles Walkley. Music will be by a ladies' (quartette?)."
[Some notes of correction to this above obituary: his brother left alive in Unionville, CT was Frederick, not Frank. Richard's first wife, Charlotte Martin, was actually a widow; she had been previously married in England to a man named William Cook. They had had a child together, also named William, but the baby died before reaching the age of one year, William Sr. dying himself not long thereafter. Richard's daughter, mentioned in this article as Mrs. Charles Woodward, was actually Mrs. Edson (Rose) Woodruff, and daughter Mrs. Wm. Garvey was actually Mrs. Willis (Minnie) Gerry.
Newspapers haven't changed in 100 years; they still can't get a name right! -TSG]
[Richard Goodhind was twice married. Both families carried on with many descendants. For the sake of some small attempt at clarity, the two families will be separated onto two pages. Choose the appropriate hyperlink below.
If you are descended from Murray Goodhind Sr. and Henrietta Hawver, choose Richard's second family with Mary L. Stickles.- TSG]
Richard's first family (with Charlotte Martin Cook)
Richard's second family (with Mary L. Stickles)
Richard Goodhind's Civil War Pension File
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