RICE

The surname Rice is identical with Roice or Royce, which was the spelling in use in this family during the first century or more in this country.
(I) Robert Royce or Rice, immigrant ancestor, was born in England and came in 1634 in the ship "Francis" to Boston. Some accounts locate him in Boston in 1631, and he seems to have been a member of the Boston church, in fact, as early as 1632. He was admitted a freeman, April 1, 1634. He was disarmed by the Boston authorities in 1639 because of his support of Wheelwright and Anne Hutchinson in their religious views. He removed to Stratford, Connecticut, in 1644, and was there in 1856. [sic: must be 1656]. He located at New London, Conn. in 1657, and was a constable there in 1660, and member of the general assembly in 1662. He left an estate valued at about four hundred and twenty pounds.
He married Elizabeth _____. Children: 1. Joshua, born at Boston, April 14, 1637. 2. Nathaniel, baptized March 24, 1639; removed to Wallingford, Conn. 3. Patience, born April 1, 1642, died young. 4. Ruth, married Dec. 15, 166_, John Lothrop. 5. Sarah, married John Caulkins. 6. Nehemiah, removed to Wallingford. 7. Samuel. 8. Isaac, see forward. 9. Jonathan, married Deborah Caulkins. Nehemiah, broather of Robert, was at New London.

(II) Isaac Rice (Royce), son of Robert Rice (Royce), was born in Conn., probably at Stratford, about 1650, and died at Wallingford in the fall of 1682. His estate was appraised at one hundred and sixty-one pounds. He was one of the first planters at Wallingford, and is said to have lived earlier at New Haven. He married Elizabeth _____, who married (second), in 1696, Ebenezer Clark.
Children, born at Wallingford: 1. Isaac, Oct. 28, 1673. 2. Robert, Sept. 4, 1674; mentioned below. 3. Sarah, March 10, 1677. 4. Martha, June 1, 1679.

(III) Robert (2) Rice, son of Isaac Rice, was born at Wallingford, Sept. 4, 1674, died there in 1759, aged ninety-four years. He married (first), June 2, 1692, Mary _____; (second), March 14, 1709, Abigail Benedict. Children of first wife, born at Wallingford: 1. Nathaniel, Oct. 2, 1694. 2. Dinah, Feb. 4, 1696. 3. Josiah, July 10, 1698. 4. Ruth, Sept. 1701. 5. Sarah, April 4, 1703. 6. Timothy, June 2, 1705. 7. Mary, July, 1707.
Children of second wife: 8. Elizabeth, Aug., 1710. 9. Gideon, May 4, 1711. 10. Prudence, April 11, 1714. 11. Moses, Sept. 24, 1716; mentioned below. 12. Martha, married Edmund Scott. 13. Lydia, born Nov. 20, 1719.

(IV) Moses, son of Robert (2) Rice, was born at Wallingford, Sept. 24, 1716. He married there, Jan. 6, 1740, Thankful Austin. Children, born at Wallingford: 1. Thankful, July 5, 1747. 2. Amasa, March 21, 1751; died Dec. 12, 1797. 3. Abner, Jan. 4, 1753. 4. Joel, Feb. 16, 1754. 5. Amos, March 19, 1757, soldier in the revolution, removed to Vermont. Probably others.

(V) Moses (2), son of Moses (1) Rice, was born in Wallingford, according to family tradition. His father, according to the same authority, was a school teacher at Wallingford and New Haven, but the records of the early schools in those towns are too imperfect to afford the names of the teachers. He removed to Herkimer county when a young man and settled in Salisbury, where he resided the remainder of his life. In 1790, according to the first federal census, Moses Rice was at Salemtown, Washington county, and he may have lived there for a time, as other sons of Moses went to the same section in Vermont and vicinity.
He married Roxana, daughter of Atwater Cook (see Cook VI), who went to New York from Wallingford.

(VI) Thomas Arnold, son of Moses (2) Rice, was born Oct. 15, 1797. He removed after his marriage to the village of Fairfield, Herkimer county. There he became prominent, serving many years as trustee of Fairfield Academy and of Fairfield Medical College.
He married Vienna, daughter of Eleazer and Hannah Carr. The Carr family came originally from New England to Salisbury, N.Y. Children: Eleazer C., mentioned below; Mary O., born 1829; Caroline A., 1831; George H., 1833; Daniel, 1836; Adam Clarke, 1840; Helen N., 1841; Charles Edmund, mentioned below.

(VII) Eleazer C., son of Thomas A. Rice, was born in Salisbury, March 6, 1827. He attended the public schools, and during his boyhood worked on his father's farm. He had afterward several large farms in Fairfield and was especially successful with his dairy. He organized the Old Fairfield Cheese Factory Association, and was its salesman for over thirty years, during all of which time the product was exported to Liverpool, England.
He retired from active life in 1885, and lived in the village of Fairfield during the remainder of his life. He was active in public affairs; was justice of the peace and supervisor for many years, and represented his district in the assembly in 1872-73. He was vice-president of the Little Falls National Bank, of which he was one of the organizers. In politics he was a Republican, in religion a Methodist. He died In August 1895.
He married in 1850, Sarah A., born at Ingham's Mills, N.Y., in 1834, daughter of David A. Ingham.
Children: 1. Ingham C., born 1852, died in March 1904; married Ida C. Jackson; he was a farmer. 2. Caroline, born 1854, married Myron W. Van Auken of Utica, N.Y., and died in 1904, leaving two children, Wilbur and Clarence M. Van Auken. 3. Edward C., mentioned below. 4. Clarence W., born July 10, 1872; for some years office manager of the Inter-State-Paving Company of Brooklyn, N.Y. Two other children died in infancy.

(VIII) Edward C., son of Eleazer C. Rice, was born at Fairfield, Herkimer county, N.Y., Oct. 21, 1871. He attended the public schools and prepared for college at Fairfield Seminary. He entered Cornell Universtiy, from which he was graduated with the class of 1894 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. He studied law at Cornell and took his degree of L.L.B. the following year. He was admitted to the bar in New York City in 1896, and after two years of practice in New York City formed a partnership with Myron W. Van Auken, of Utica. The firm was dissolved in 1907; and since 1908 Mr. Rice has been in general and successful practice at Herkimer.
During the Spanish war he served in the First New York Volunteer Infantry until the regiment left Fort Hamilton for San Francisco. He is a member of Newport Lodge, No. 455, Free and Accepted Masons, and the Herkimer County Bar Association. In politics he is a Republican.

(VIII) Charles Edmund, son of Thomas A. Rice, was born in Fairfield, Sept. 15, 1846. He was prepared for college at Fairfield Academy, a famous old institution which was incorporated in 1803, and entered Hamilton College at Clinton, from which he was graduated in 1867. He taught for a year in the Bloomsburg Literary Institute at Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, and began the study of law there in the office of John G. Freeze.
In 1868-69 he attended the Albany Law School, from which he graduated with the degree of L.L.B., and was admitted to the bar. He located at Wilkes Barre, Pa., entereing the office of a kinsman, Lyman Kahes, and Feb. 21, 1870, was admitted to the bar of the county of Luzerne. He has lived at Wilkes Barre ever since.
He soon took a leading place in his profession. In 1874 he was candidate of the Republican party for judge of the orphans' court, but was defeated. In 1876 he was nominated for district attorney and elected over P. J. O'Hanlon, Democrat, by a majority of two thousand, though the Democratic national ticket had a pluraity of four thousand at the same election. He was elected judge of the court of common pleas for Luzerne county in 1870. Upon his accession to the bench he became by virtue of seniority of commission, president judge. He was re-elected to the bench and held office until June 28, 1895, when he became president judge of the newly created superior court of Pennsylvania. In the fall of that year he was elected for the full term of ten years as judge of the superior court. He received the honorary degree of L.L.D. from Lafayette College in 1895. He was one of the original trustees of the Memorial Presbyterian church of Wilkes Barre, and is now a member of the First Presbyterian church of that city.
He compiled and published the "Letters and Other Writings" of his brother, Lieutenant Adam Clarke Rice, of the One Hundred and Twenty-first Regiment, New York Volunteers, in 1864. He married, Dec. 8, 1873, Maria Mills, daughter of Henry M. Fuller. Children: 1. Charles Edmund, born Oct. 8, 1874. 2. Henry Fuller, Aug. 13, 1876, deceased. 3. Philip Sydney, June 22, 1878.

SECOND ENTRY:

[SAME as above till you get to (II)].
The surname Rice is identical with Roice or Royce, which was the spelling is use in this family during the first century or more in this country.

(I) Robert Royce, or Rice, immigrant ancestor, was born in England, and came in 1634 in the ship "Francis" to Boston. Some accounts locate him in Boston in 1631, and he seems to have been a member of the Boston church, in fact, as early as 1632. He was admitted a freeman, April 1, 1634. He was disarmed by the Boston authorities in 1639 because of his support of Wheelwright and Anne Hutchinson in their religious views.
He removed to Stratford, Connecticut, in 1644, and was there in 1636. He located at New London, Conn., in 1657, and was constable there in 1660 and member of the general assembly in 1662, He left an estate valued at about four hundred and twenty pounds.
He married Elizabeth _____.
Children:
1. Joshua, born at Boston, April 14, 1637.
2. Nathaniel, baptized March 24, 1639; removed to Wallingford, Conn.
3. Patience, born April 1, 1842, died young.
4. Ruth, married Dec. 15, 1669, John Lothrop.
5. Sarah, married John Caulkins.
6. Nehemiah, removed to Wallingford.
7. Samuel, mentioned below.
8. Isaac, removed to New London.
9. Jonathan, married Deborah Caulkins.
Nehemiah, brother of Robert, was at New London.

(II) Samuel Royce or Rice, son of Robert Rice, was born about 1645, and settled early in Wallingford. He was a freeman in 1669. He married, Jan. 9, 1667, Hannah Churchwood, of Wethersfield.
Children:
1. Samuel, mentioned below.
2. Abigail, born Nov. 2, 1667.
3. Prudence, July 26, 1680.
4. Deborah, Sept. 8, 1683.
5. Isaac, March 10, 1688.

(III) Samuel Royce or Rice, son of Samuel Royce or Rice, was born about 1668. He married (first) June 5, 1690, Sarah Baldwin; (second) Dec. 12, 1695, Hannah Benedict, who died at Meriden, Conn. Jan. 2, 1761, aged ninety years. He died at Meriden, May 14, 1757, aged eighty seven years.
Children:
1. Ebenezer, born Sept. 25, 1691.
2. Nathaniel, Oct. 21, 1692.
3. John, mentioned below.
4. Mary, Feb. 17, 1695.
5. Jacob, April 11, 1697.
Children of second wife:
6. Hannah, Feb. 19, 1697-98.
7. Ezekiel, Feb. 10, 1699.
8. Abel, Jan. 10, 1700.
9. Samuel, Oct. 5, 1702.
10. Benjamin, May 23, 1705.
11. Mehitable, July 30, 1709.
12. Ebenezer, Aug. 21, 1713.

(IV) John Royce or Rice, son of Samuel Rice, was born at Wallingford, April 25, 1693. His children appear to have settled in Woodbury, Conn.:
1. John, mentioned below.
2. Matthew, married Deborah ____ and had Ann, Hannah, Matthew, Mark and Luke, between 1741 and 1748.
3. David, married Ruth ____ and had Sarah, March 25, 1741, David, Feb. 13, 1744.
4. Deborah, married Oct. 3, 1739, David Roots, at Woodbury.
5. Nathan, married Ruth ____ and had Rachel, Feb. 22, 1739, at Woodbury.
In 1790 John, David and Mark were heads of families at Washington, formerly Woodbury, Conn.

(V) John (2), son of John (1) Royce, was born about 1705, probably at Wallingford, and died at Washington, Conn. Oct, 1795. He married Dorcas ____.
Children, probably all born at Woodbury:
1. Nehemiah, settled in Lanesborough, Mass.; in the revolution, 1781.
2. Jehiel (not recorded, unless the name is misspelled Jehu), mentioned below.
3. Deborah, Feb. 13, 1735.
4. Jonathan, July 15, 1739; soldier in the revolution, with brothers Adonijah, Nehemiah and Josiah, from Lanesborough, Mass.
5. Jehu, born June 17, 1741 (spelled John in record of baptisms June 14, 1741; note the date is before birth of Jehu).
6. Adonijah, born Dec. 30, 1743; removed to Lanesborough with brothers Josiah, Nehemiah and Jonathan; married (first) Amy Brush, at New Fairfield, Conn., 1771; (second) Jan. 1, 1796, Deborah Baker, at Newport, Rhode Island, daughter of Peckham Baker; was captain in the militia and soldier in the revolution.
7. Amos, June 6, 1746.
8. Dorcas, Jan. 5, 1749.
9. Josiah, June 17, 1750.
10. Ruth, Jan. 28, 1754.
11. Rachel, twin of Ruth.

(VI) Jehiel Rice, son of John (2) Royce, was, according to the best evidence obtainable, born at Woodbury about 1730. We have no further record of him except that Jehiel Jr., his son, was called junior as late as 1779, when he was a soldier in the revoltuion, showing that the father was then living. Possibly he went to Lanesborough.

(VII) Jehiel (2), son of Jehiel (1) Rice, was born in Woodbury, or Washington, Conn. Aug. 23, 1758. He was a soldier in Captain Stanley's company, in July, 1779. (See Conn. Hist. Soc., vol. viii, 9, 194). He removed to Lanesborough, Mass., after 1779, where his uncles had located. In 1790 he and his uncle, Adonijah, were living and heads of families at Lanesborough, Berkshire county. Most of the others went to Vermont. The name is spelled Rice in the census, but Royce in the town history. Adonijah had three males over sixteen in his family, one under that age, and seven females. Jehiel (spelled Jaheel) had three sons under sixteen and one female (wife probably) in his family.
In 1803 he went to northern New York and settled in the wilderness one mile from the present village of Lowville, Lewis county, and cleared his farm. He eventually had a farm of two hundred and thirty acres.
He married, Nov. 26, 1761, Pernal Rice, a relative, thought to be daughter of one of the Lanesborough uncles. They had Abel, mentioned below. Doubtless other children.

(VIII) Abel, son of Jehiel (2) Rice, was born in Lanesborough, and came with his parents to Lewis county, New York, in 1803. He died April 3, 1871. He shared in the arduous toil of clearing the wild land and building the house and barns. He became in course of time one of the most prosperous farmers and business men of the county in his day. He built the first carding mill in Lewis county and operated it successfully for several years. During the war of 1812 he served in the American army. He was a prominent member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and in his later years a Republican in politics.
He married, Aug. 13, 1809, Diana Doty, born Sept. 3, 1794, died Dec. 5, 1829. (See Doty VI).
Children, born on the old Rice homestead at Lowville:
1. Sophronia, Sept. 27, 1810, married, Oct. 30, 1832, Seymour Hitchcock.
2. Warren D., Aug. 19, 1812.
3. Job S., Aug. 21, 1814.
4. Willard, April 3, 1816, married Elizabeth McDowell, July 7, 1840.
5. Seymour, Feb. 7, 1819.
6. James Harvey, Aug. 8, 1821, married Harriett A. Doty, Jan. 18, 1845.
7. Clarissa M., Dec. 7, 1824, married Chester Shumway, Oct. 5, 1842.
8. Charles S., mentioned below.

(IX) Charles S., son of Abel Rice, was born on the old Rice homestead, Feb. 7, 1827, died Dec. 16, 1902. He attended the district schools and Lowville Academy, and later he taught the district schools of the vicinity during the winter terms. He worked on the farm during his boyhood and succeeded his father as owner. He made a specialty of dairy farming and employed the most modern method and appliances in his work. He contributed the results of his own experiments, research and experience to the agricultural journals of the state from time to time, and for many years prepared the Lewis county crop report for the New York state bulletins. He was one of the most prominent farmer so the county; a man of sterling integrity and uprightness, possessing the respect and confidence of the entire community.
In 1842 he joined the Methodist Episcopal church and at one time served on the official board. He was a trustee of Lowville Academy. In politics a Republican, he was a superintendent of the poor of the town, and for nine years on the board of assessors.
He married, Jan. 9, 1849, Elizabeth, born Aug. 10, 1830, died April 9, 1906, daughter of Joseph and Mary (Snell) Louckes.
Children:
1. Helen, born Nov. 14, 1849; married Walter A. Ling, of Glenfield.
2. Leonard C., Feb. 18, 1851, mentioned below.
3. Mary D., Sept. 2, 1858, married William House of Houseville, New York, now of Livingston, Montana.

(X) Leonard C., only son of Charles S. Rice was born on the old Rice homestead near the village of Lowville, Feb. 18, 1851. He was educated in the district schools and Lowville Academy. He worked on the farm with his father and continued farming on the same progressive methods that had made his father successful, when he became the owner after his father died. He has kept up with the progress in agriculture and continued the improvements. He is a dairy farmer and has a herd of Holsteins that produces ten thousand pounds of milk per cow annually. He has made the new methods pay and takes rank among the most prosperous as well as the most enterprising farmers of the county.
He is a Republican in politics and a Methodist Episcopal in religion. He has been a member of the official board of the church.
He married, Nov. 13, 1872, Alice D., born in Lewis county, Jan. 23, 1853, died March 18, 1903, daughter of Deacon Dennis and Jane (Galloway) Johnson.
Children:
1. Charles Johnson, born on the homestead, Aug. 25, 1877; educated at Lowville Academy; his father's assistant on the farm; married Aprl 15, 1908, Nina Lucille, daughter of Frank W. Arthur.
2. Vera A., July 26, 1880.
3. Clara, April 15, 1884; graduate of Syracuse University; teacher two years in the Canton high school.
4. Albert I., Aug. 15, 1891, died Oct. 3, 1907.

THIRD ENTRY:

John Rice, pioneer ancestor of the branch of the Rice family here under consideration, was born in Bavaria, 1807, died Oct. 16, 1896. He emigrated to the United States in 1844, and the following year united in marriage to Louise Beaum in Schenectady, N.Y.
Desiring to purchase some land at a low price, he journeyed north, going by stage from Rome to Lowville, and the route from New Bremen village to Beach Hill, where they finally settled, was only a trail through the woods. Here they endured all the hardships and privations of the first settlers, but they cleared and improved the land, erected substantial building, and by thrift, perseverance and industry accumulated a comfortable competence for their declining years. He was a man of strict integrity and sturdy honesty, and he laid the foundation for a life of usefulness, which his children have followed.
His wife, who was a helpmeet in every sense of the word, died April 13, 1902.
Among their children was Philip A., see forward.

Philip A., son of John and Louise (Beaum) Rice, was born at New Bremen, N.Y. March 26, 1860. He acquired a practical education in the common schools of the neighborhood, and after completing his studies worked for the farmers in that section. Concluding to make progressive farming his vocation in life, he first rented and then purchased one of the most productive and valuable farms in Lewis county. This farm, known as "Popular Grove," is nicely located in Lowville near the city. Mr. Rice has achieved a large degree of success owing to the fact that he gives his work that intelligent supervision which is so necessary. He makes a specialty of dairying and is continually striving to improve his methods. His building are modern in construction and equippped with all necessary appliances for the conduct of a successful business. The premises are neatly and tastefully laid out, and in all respects his farm is one of the most progressive and up-to-date in the state, showing clearly the hand of a master.
Mr. Rice is hospitable, generous and friendly, and enjoys the esteem and friendship of all with whom he is associated, being recognized as one of the substantial and influential men of the county.
He is a staunch Republican in his political views, and he and his family are regular attendants of the Lowville Methodist Church, in the work of which they take an active interest.
Mr. Rice married, Feb. 13, 1883, Ellen, born at Turin, N.Y. Feb. 17, 1858, daughter of Louis and Louise (Kohler) Veomett.
Children:
1. Louis John, born Oct. 18, 1884, died May 25, 1896.
2. Ernest Arleigh, born June 5, 1893.
Louis and Louise Veomett were natives of Switzerlandl; shortly after their marriage they emigrated to the United States, settling at Turin, N.Y., where they prospered in their undertakings for a number of years; finally their health failed and they both died in the prime of life, leaving a number of small children.

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