My Genealogy Hound

HON. FRANCIS H. BERRICK, M. D., of Buchanan, was born in Middlesex, Middlesex County, Mass., on the 18th of September, 1823. His father, Harmones Berrick, was a native of Germany, and fought for six years under the immortal Bonaparte. Having been taken prisoner by the English, he was brought to America when about twenty-five years old. After being released from captivity he established his home in Middlesex County, Mass., where he followed his trade of a glass manufacturer.

The mother of our subject was of Irish descent and was born and reared in Maine. She bore the maiden name of Margaret Brewer, and was a lady of pleasant disposition and sunshiny ways. She was especially devoted to the welfare of her children, of whom there were eight, as follows: James H., deceased; Jane O., the widow of Joseph Dale, residing in Richmond, Me.; Margaret, who is the wife of Edwin Stearns, of Lowell, Mass.; Francis H., of this sketch; Edward, a business man of Boston; Anna G., who married John Collins, now deceased; and Charles M., who enlisted in defense of the Union during the Civil War and was in active service from 1861 until 1866.

In his father’s home, Francis H. Berrick grew to manhood, meanwhile becoming through study and extensive reading a well-informed man. In 1847 he entered the ministry of the Second Advent Church and for a number of years was engaged in preaching the Gospel, holding pastorates at various places in the Bay State. In 1861 he entered the law department of Harvard College, where he prosecuted his legal studies and from which institution he was graduated. He was admitted to the Bar in Essex County, Mass., in 1864 and practiced his profession for two years in Boston. Realizing, however, that the great West offered opportunities which the East could not, he determined upon establishing a home in the Mississippi Valley.

In 1868 our subject removed to Minnesota and accepted a pastorate of a church in the northern part of the State, near Minneapolis, where he remained until 1868. From that State he removed to Indiana, and while serving as pastor of a church in La Porte County he commenced the study of medicine. In 1869 he removed to Buchanan, and here opened an office for the practice of his last-chosen profession. Four years afterward he took a course of lectures at the Hahnemann Medical College, graduating from that institution in 1873. Upon his return to Buchanan he resumed his duties as a general practitioner.

All matters relating to the welfare and progress of Buchanan and the surrounding country are deeply interesting to the Doctor. He has mingled considerably with the public affairs of the county and has been called upon to fill various posts of trust. In 1874 he was elected Senator and served with credit to himself, representing his constituents with ability and discretion. He also filled the position of President of Buchanan and served as a member of the Board of School Directors. Socially, he is a Mason, belonging to Blue Lodge No. 68, and is also identified with the Knights Templar, holding membership at Niles.

Dr. Berrick has been married three times. Of his first union three children were born, viz.: Charles S., now residing in Chicago; Frank, who was in the United States service for eight years and is now employed at the World’s Columbian Exposition; and Adelaide A., who married Henry Croup, now deceased. The second wife of the Doctor was Lucy A. Jarvis, daughter of Barton and Elizabeth Jarvis. After her death he was married on the 30th of March, 1890, to Mrs. May Tremmel, who by her former union has one child, Gertrude.