Sketches of Successful New Hampshire Men

by Various

COL. THOMAS P. PIERCE.

BY HON. JOHN H. GOODALE.

Most of the success and thrift which during the past thirty years have attended the manufacturing interests of New Hampshire are due to the untiring industry and intelligent foresight of that class of self-reliant, progressive business men who, starting in life with ordinary advantages, have had the nerve to seize and the capacity to improve the opportunities within their reach. Prominent among this class of enterprising and valuable citizens of this state is the gentleman whose name stands at the head of this page,—Hon. Thomas P. Pierce.

Col. Pierce was born in Chelsea, Mass., on the 30th of August, 1820. He came from Revolutionary stock on both the father's and mother's side. After limited training in the public schools, he learned the trade of carriage and ornamental painting in Boston.

In 1840, the subject of this sketch came to Manchester, which was then springing into existence as a manufacturing village, under the auspices of the Amoskeag Land and Water Company. Three years previous the first improvements were begun, and it was now a bustling town of six hundred families, gathered from every section of northern New England. With much of the rush and recklessness of a newly grown community, there were then germs of that energy which has since made Manchester an eminently prosperous city. Young Pierce, not yet of age, worked as a journeyman at his trade, and by his unvarying courtesy and cheerful spirit was a favorite among his associates. He was an active member of the famous Stark Guards,—a military organization of which Hon. George W. Morrison and Walter French, Esq., were successively in command.

There is no more exhaustive test of a young man's stamina than life in a rapidly growing manufacturing village. One literally goes in and out in the presence of the enemies' pickets, though they may not be intentional enemies. The temptation to excess is constant and persistent. Often the most brilliant and sagacious fall victims. It is to the credit of Thomas P. Pierce that he passed the ordeal unscathed. In the summer of 1842 it was his good fortune to marry Miss Asenath R. McPherson, the daughter of a farmer in the adjoining town of Bedford.

The war with Mexico began in 1846. When it was decided that an army under Gen. Scott should be raised to march to the city of Mexico, it was ordered that a regiment of infantry should be raised in New England. Mr. Pierce at once volunteered as a private, and was soon after commissioned, by President Polk, as second lieutenant of one of the companies of the New England regiment. The command of this regiment was first assigned to Franklin Pierce; but on his promotion to the command of a brigade it was given to Truman B. Ransom, a brave and accomplished officer from Vermont.

Early in the summer the brigade under Gen. Pierce was ordered to proceed to the eastern coast of Mexico, and to land in the vicinity of Vera Cruz, to be ready to co-operate with the main army under Gen. Scott in the march to the Mexican capital. The troops disembarked on the 28th of June,—a most unfavorable season of the year. The heat was so intense on the lowlands that to march between nine o'clock in the morning and four in the afternoon was impossible. With the exception of a few of the officers, the entire force was made up of new recruits. It occupied two weeks to secure mules for army transportation. On the 14th of July the movement toward the city of Mexico began, and, on reaching the foothills, every bridge and fortified pass was strongly guarded by hostile Mexicans. There was constant skirmishing, and the enemy, from the cliffs and thickets, made annoying and sometimes dangerous attacks. The climate, the difficulties of marching, and hardships of a military life in a strange country bore heavily on the inexperienced soldiery. Amid these perplexities, the tact, the genial spirit, and untiring attention to the wants of his comrades won for Lieut. Pierce a high regard and strong personal attachment. In the sharp conflicts which occurred on reaching the table-lands, Lieut. Pierce took an active part. At the battle of Contreras, fought August 19, he was personally complimented by Col. Ransom for bravery,—himself soon after a martyr to his personal valor.

Reaching the higher lands, Gen. Scott found the flower of the Mexican army entrenched among the cliffs of Churubusco. To leave the enemy in the rear was to hazard everything; and in the dangerous task of dislodging and utterly routing them the New England regiment bore a conspicuous part. In his report of the battle, Gen. Scott placed the name of Lieut. Pierce on the list of those recommended for promotion on account of gallant and meritorious conduct. The storming of Chepultepec soon followed, in which the New England regiment had literally to cross a succession of ridges and ravines, exposed to a deadly fire from the enemy among the crags. The assault was successful, and the surrender of the Mexican capital immediately followed. In this action, and in the details of patrol service during the winter, while the city was occupied by the American army, Lieut. Pierce was officially commended for the vigilant discharge of his duties.