My Genealogy Hound

ALONZO H. WARREN, proprietor of the Williams House, Williamsburg, and a veteran of the Civil War, was born in Conway, Franklin County, Mass., January 1, 1841, son of William and Jane (Bigelow) Warren. Mr. Warren’s grandparents were Samuel and Abigail Warren, the former of whom was an old resident of Conway. He owned a good farm, which he cultivated with good results, and devoted a great deal of time and attention to the raising and fattening of cattle for the market, in which he was quite successful. He was a Whig in politics and a Congregationalist in his religion. Samuel Warren died in Conway at the age of seventy-five years, and his wife also lived to an advanced age. They were the parents of six children: William, Samuel, Ephraim, Esther, Martha, and Rebecca.

William Warren, father of Mr. Warren, was born in Conway. He received a district-school education, and in early manhood purchased a farm which was located in the northern part of the town of Conway. After following agriculture there for a time he bought in the vicinity of Bardwell’s Ferry a saw and grist mill, which he operated successfully for a number of years. These mills were destroyed by a flood, and their site is now occupied by the Eldridge Mills. Mr. William Warren was originally a Whig, later a Republican, and was esteemed as a man of much public spirit. He died at the age of fifty-five years. His wife was the mother of six children: William, Francis, Philena, Elizabeth, Alonzo H., and Mary. She died aged fifty-nine years.

Alonzo H. Warren attended the district schools of his native town. In 1861 he enlisted as a private in Company H, Tenth Massachusetts Volunteer Regiment, under the command of Colonel Briggs. He was detailed to serve at brigade headquarters as a teamster, in which capacity he continued for three years, and was discharged July 6, 1864. He returned to his native town, where he rented a farm; and after engaging in agriculture for a time entered the employ of the New Haven & Massachusetts Central Railroad Company, as overseer of men and teams, a position which he satisfactorily filled for some time. He later purchased the Sears farm, located in the town of Ashfield, Franklin County, consisting of ninety acres of fertile land. He has remodelled and enlarged the house, erected a new barn, placed the other buildings in good repair, improved the land, and set out fruit-trees, also introducing the cultivation of berries. He also conducts a choice dairy, to which he devotes a great deal of attention. In 1894 Mr. Warren leased the Williams House, in Williamsburg, which he conducts in a most satisfactory manner. The table is in a measure supplied by the products of his farm, which are greatly appreciated by his many guests. He has also purchased the Belcher livery stable, and runs it in connection with the hotel. At the present time he has a most liberal patronage. Since establishing his residence in Williamsburg he has gained the esteem and confidence of his fellow-townsmen.

On November 15, 1866, Mr. Warren was united in marriage to Ella J. Ranney, daughter of Luther B. Ranney, a prosperous farmer of Ashfield, and has six children, namely: Earl, an employee of the Adams Express Company in Holyoke, married to Grace Tuttle, and father of one child, Irma; Ida, a leading dressmaker of Williamsburg; Edward, engaged in business with his father, and married to Mary Graves; Luther, a conductor and mail and express agent on the Conway Electric Railway; Roy, a successful horse dealer of Holyoke; and Mary, yet attending school. Mr. Warren is a Republican in politics, and liberal in his religious views. He is a Comrade of Post William L. Baker, No. 86, Grand Army of the Republic, of Northampton.