Descendants of John Maxfield
of Salisbury, Massachusetts
Ninth Generation

GORDON TIRRELL 9 MAXFIELD (Charles8-7, Warren6-5, Timothy4-3-2, John1) was born at Fairhaven, Bristol County, Massachusetts, on 1 February 1905, a son of Charles Albert Maxfield, Sr., and his wife Bertha Harriet Tirrell.[1] He died at Fairhaven on 13 April 1965.[2] He married at New Bedford, Bristol County, on 18 August 1934 RUTH MATHILDE HOLMSTROM.[3] She was born at Norway on 21 March 1905,[4] a daughter of John M. Holmstrom and his wife Augusta Hjarpe. She died at Hingham, Plymouth County, Massachusetts, on 9 October 1979.[5]

Gordon grew up in Fairhaven, the second of six children and the oldest son. He worked with his father as a plumber and bought the business after his father's death.[6]

Ruth Holmstrom was born in Norway according to the 1910 and 1940 censuses, in Sweden according to the 1930 census. Perhaps some of the confusion comes from the fact that Norway became independent of Sweden 2 weeks after Ruth's birth. Her parents were consistently reported as born in Sweden. When Ruth was one or two years old she came to America with her parents and older sister. The 1910 and 1930 censuses found them in New Bedford. In 1930, Ruth, age 25, was teaching school.[7] She was a graduate of Bridgewater State Teachers College, Bridgewater, Plymouth County.[8]

Gordon served in the military from 1933 to 1948. According to his engagement announcement (F Star 23 Jan 1933) he was 1st Lieutenant in Battery F, 241st C.A.H.D. He was activated for national service 16 September 1940 to 2 November 1945. The Fairhaven Star reported that he was home from the Aleutians for a thirty day leave in July 1945. He was a major in Coast Artillery Corps in World War II.[9]

Gordon and Ruth Maxfield and family were active in the Unitarian Church in Fairhaven.[10]

Gordon Maxfield died of cancer in 1965. Ruth later lived with her daughter Sandra, in Hingham, and died at the Deering Nursing Home in 1979.[11]

Gordon Maxfield's obituary appeared in the New Bedford Standard Times as follows:[12]

G. T. Maxfield, Plumber, Dies

Gordon T. Maxfield, 60, husband of Mrs. Ruth (Holmstrom) Maxfield, of 72 Chestnut St., Fairhaven, died at home today after a long illness.

Born in Fairhaven, he lived there all his life. He was a heating and plumbing contractor.

Mr. Maxfield was a member of the Unitarian Church and a member of the Pilot Club and former chairman of the house committee of that church.

He was a World War II veteran, inducted as captain of Coast Artillery, Massachusetts National Guard, Sept. 16, 1940. Mr. Maxfield was released from active duty to State control as a major Nov. 2, 1945, and transferred to State retired list as lieutenant-colonel on March 10, 1948.

He was a member of the George H. Taber Lodge, A.F. and A.M., and Fairhaven Post 166, American Legion.

Besides his wife, he is survived by two sons, Gordon T. Maxfield, Jr. of Catonsville, Md., and Carl B. Maxfield of Storrs, Conn.; two daughters, Mrs. Sandra Shaw of Hingham and Miss Hollis P. Maxfield of Fairhaven; two brothers, Lawrence B. and Charles Maxfield, both of Fairhaven; three sisters, Mrs. Doris Hartshorn of Walpole, Mrs. Thais Noveck of Hartford, Conn., and Mrs. Jean Perkins of Fairhaven, and one grand-daughter



The following appear to be High School senior pictures which were given to their Aunt Jean, and which I received following her death.


Gordon Tirrell Maxfield, Jr.

Carl Bayley Maxfield

Hollis Pope Maxfield

Daughter Sandra Ruth lived her adult life in Hingham. Her obituary, which appeared in the HinghamJournal, follows:[13]

Mrs Sandra Maxfield Shaw, 70
Sandra Shaw Taught music in Hingham for many years

Hingham Journal, The (MA) - Thursday, September 28, 2006. Sandra (Maxfield) Shaw, 70, of Hingham, died on Sept. 21, 2006, at Brigham & Women's Hospital in Boston.

Born in New Bedford, she was raised and educated in Fairhaven where she graduated from high school in 1953. She graduated from Connecticut College, and in 1981 received a Certificate in Music Education from the Boston Conservatory of Music.

A resident of Hingham for 44 years, Mrs. Shaw taught music, specifically stringed instruments in the Hingham Public School System and also taught many pupils privately from her Hingham home. An accomplished violist and violinist, she played with the Hingham Civic Orchestra, the Hingham Symphony Orchestra, the Longy Chamber Orchestra in Cambridge and the Longwood Symphony Orchestra in Boston.

She was an active member of the Second Parish Unitarian Universalist Church. A devoted grandmother, Mrs. Shaw enjoyed travel and her second family home in Waitsfield, Vt.

She leaves her husband, Kimball Shaw of Hingham; her children, Martha S. Nevill and her husband John, of Falmouth, Peter K. Shaw of Mattapoisett, Douglas G. Shaw and his wife Erin, of Fletcher, Vt., and her American Field Service daughter, Erminia M. M. Marquezi Correa of Sao Paulo, Brazil; five grandchildren, Ryan H. Nevill, Hollis C. Nevill, Leah G. Nevill and Matthew K. Nevill, all of Falmouth, and Wesley T. Shaw of Fletcher, Vt.; her siblings, Gordon T. Maxfield of Holliston, and Hollis P. Mitchell of Ankorage, Alaska. She was the sister of the late Carl B. Maxfield. . . .

The following obituary for Carl Maxfield appeared in the Hartford Courant:[14]

Carl Bayley Maxfield, 58, of Charlotte, NC, formerly a long time resident of Glastonbury, died Friday [January 14, 2000] at his residence surrounded by his family, after a courageous battle with cancer. Mr. Maxfield was born October 18, 1941, in Fairhaven, Ma., son of the late Gordon and Ruth Maxfield. Carl served in the United States Marine Corps, and was a graduate of Eastern Connecticut State College in Willimantic. He worked in the Information Systems Division of Pratt and Whitney in East Hartford for 25 years, and most recently was employed at Piedmont Natural Gas in Charlotte, NC, as a senior data analyst. Carl is survived by his wife Peggy, son Eric Maxfield of Longmont, Co.; a very special stepdaughter, Donovan Tracy of St. Paul, Mn; and a step son, James Montenieri of Charlotte, NC; two sisters, Sandra Shaw and her husband, Kimball, of Hingham, Ma, and Hollis Mitchell and her husband, Henry of Anchorage, Ak; brother Gordon Maxfield and his wife, Marty of Hollisotn, Ma; and several nieces and nephews. His family is most appreciative to his many colleagues at Piedmont Natural Gas, the Oncology Staff at Presbyterian Hospital, and especially the staff of Presbyterian Home Care/Hospice for their love, compassion and support. A memorial service will be held at the Unitarian Church in Fairhaven, ma, at 4 p.m., Sunday, January 23, 2000, officiated by Carl's cousin, Reverend Nehemiah Boynton. . . .

Gordon Tirrell Maxfield and his wife Ruth Holmstrom had the following children:

  1. SANDRA RUTH10 MAXFIELD b. at New Bedford on 2 October 1935; d. at Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts, on 21 September 2006; m. at Firhaven on 2 October 1957 KIMBALL SHAW, b. on 25 October 1935. Children of Sandra and Kimball:[15]
    1. Martha Hollis Shaw b. at Boston on 12 November 1962; m. John Nevill.
    2. Peter Kimball Shaw b. at Boston on 18 May 1966.
    3. Douglas Gordon Shaw b. on 8 April 1969, m. Erin ______.
  2. GORDON TIRRELL10 MAXFIELD, Jr. b. at New Bedford on 19 January 1940; m. at Windham, Windham County, Connecticut, on 1 June 1963 MARTHA FOWLER, b. on 27 October 1940.[16] Children of Gordon and Martha:
    1. Oliver Holmstrom Maxfield b. on 19 February 1970.
    2. Jane Maxfield b. on 19 July 1975.
  3. CARL BAYLEY10 MAXFIELD b. at New Bedford on 18 October 1941; d. at Charlotte, Mecklenburg County, North Carolina on 14 January 2000; m(1). at Fairhaven on 27 April 1963 DONNA HOLDEN, b. at Massachusetts on 12 November 1941; divorced at Hartford County, Connecticut, on 14 December 1972; m(2). at East Haddam, Middlesex County, Conecticut, on 22 May 1976 JOYCE A. DONAVAN b. on 1949; div. at Hartford County on 1993; m(3). PEGGY ________. Donna Holden Maxfield m(2). at Bethany, New Haven County, Connecticut, on 13 August 1983 RALPH A. POULIN b. about 1935-6.[17] Child of Carl and Donna:
    1. Eric Holden Maxfield b. on 24 August 1967; m. at Sea Ranch Lakes, Broward County, Florida, on 9 December 2000 Mary Helen Bidwell.[18] Children of Eric and Mary:
      1. Holden McGarry Maxfield b. on 30 August 2002.
      2. Eliza Jane Maxfield b. on 17 January 2005.
  4. HOLLIS POPE10 MAXFIELD b. at New Bedford on 9 May 1949; m. at Worthington, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, on 5 June 1971 HENRY VINCENT EDWARD MITCHELL, b. at Cleveland, Cuyahoga Coiunty, Ohio, about 1946-7.[19] Children of Hollis and Henry:
    1. Caitlin Mitchell at Alaska on 19 September 1980.
    2. Colin Vincent Mitchell b. at Alaska on 14 October 1982.

NOTES

1Massachusetts Archives, "Vital Records of Massachusetts, 1841-1910," digital images, American Ancestors (americanancestors.org : accessed 13 September 2017), vol. 550, p. 161, e. 4, Fairhaven Births, 1905, Gordon T. Maxfield.
2"G. T. Maxfield, Plumber, Dies," Standard Times, 13 April 1965. Genealogical Papers of Charles A. Maxfield, Lansdale, Pennsylvania.
3Bertha Harriet (Tirrell) Maxfield, Family Record of Charles Pope and Ellen (Nelly) Thomas Maxfiield. Notes compiled before 1938; privately held by Charles A. Maxfield, Lansdale, Pennsylvania.
4Social Security Administration, "U.S. Social Security Death Index," database, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 21 May 2013), Ruth Maxfield, 012-38-0873, 31 March 1905.
5"U.S. Social Security Death Index", Ruth Maxfield, 012-38-0873. Ruth Howe, Judy Robinson, Charles and Pauline Maxfield, interview by Charles A. Maxfield III, 7 June 1988; notes, privately held by Charles A. Maxfield III, Lansdale, Pennsylvania.
6Ruth Howe ,et al., interview, 7 June 1988.
7Thirteenth Census of the United States: 1910, population, New Bedford, Bristol County, Massachusetts, enumeration district (ED) 206, roll 579, p. 7B, household 160, John M. Holmstrom family; digital images, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 26 September 2018); NARA group T624, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C. Fifteenth Census of the United States: 1930, population, New Bedford, Bristol County, Massachusetts, enumeration district (ED) 129, p. 21A, household 417, John M. Holmstrom family; digital images, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 26 September 2018); NARA microfilm record group T626; Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration. Sixteenth Census of the United States: 1940, population, Fairhaven, Bristol County, Massachusetts, enumeration district (ED) 3-61, roll 1572, p. 8B, household 174, Gordon T. Maxfield family; digital images, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 24 September 2018); NARA microfilm group T627.
8Engagement Announcement: Gordon Maxfield and Ruth Holmstrom, Fairhaven Star, 23 January 1933, .
9"G. T. Maxfield, Plumber, Dies." Engagement Announcement: Gordon Maxfield and Ruth Holmstrom. Fairhaven Star, 12 July 1945.
10"G. T. Maxfield, Plumber, Dies."
11Ruth Howe ,et al, interview, 7 June 1988.
12"G. T. Maxfield, Plumber, Dies."
13"Mrs Sandra Maxfield Shaw, 70," obituary, Hingham Journal, 28 September 2006; Genealogy Bank (genealogybank.com : accessed 18 May 2018), Recent Obituaries.
14"Mr. Carl Bayley Maxfield, 58," obituary, Hartford Courant, 18 January 2000; Genealogy Bank (genealobybank.com : accessed 18 May 2018), Recent Obituaries.
15Information on the family of Sandra from: Ruth Howe , et al, interview, 7 June 1988. "U.S. Social Security Death Index", database, Ancestry, Sandra M. Shaw. Maxfield, Bertha, Family Record. Jean H. (Maxfield) Perkins, Genealogy: Perkins-Maxfield. Loose-leaf notebook compiled about 1973; privately held by Charles A. Maxfield, Lansdale, Pennsylvania, Maxfield: Individual worksheet- Gordon Tirrell Maxfield. "Mrs Sandra Maxfield Shaw, 70."
16Information on the family of Gordon, Jr., from: Perkins, Jean Maxfield, Perkins-Maxfield Genealogy, Maxfield: Individual worksheet- Gordon Tirrell Maxfield. Connecticut Department of Public Health, Hartford, Connecticut, "Connecticut Marriage File, 1959-2012," index, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 30 January 2006), Maxfield-Fowler, 1963.
17Information on the family of Carl from: North Carolina State Center for Health Statistics; Department of Health and Human Services; Archives and Records Section, "North Carolina, Death Indexes, 1908-2004," index, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 9 January 2008). Ruth Howe , et al, interview, 7 June 1988. "U.S. Social Security Death Index", database, Ancestry, Carl B. Maxfield, 019-32-8465. Perkins, Jean Maxfield, Perkins-Maxfield Genealogy, Maxfield: Individual worksheet- Gordon Tirrell Maxfield. "Mr Carl Bayley Maxfield, 58." United States, Department of Veterans Affairs, Washington, DC, "Beneficiary Identification Records Locator Subsystem (BIRLS) Death File, 1850-2010," database, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 28 November 2011), Carl Maxfield, 019328465. Fairhaven Star, 25 April 1963. Connecticut Department of Public Health, Hartford, Connecticut, "Connecticut Divorce Index, 1968-1997," database, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 28 February 2015), Carl-Donna Maxfield, 1972. "Connecticut Marriage File, 1959-2012," index, Ancestry, Maxfield-Donovan, 1976. "Connecticut Divorce Index, 1968-1997," database, Ancestry, Carl-Joyce Maxfield, 1993. "Connecticut Marriage File, 1959-2012," index, Ancestry, Poulin-Maxfield.
18Information on the family of Eric from: Perkins, Jean Maxfield, Perkins-Maxfield Genealogy, Maxfield: Individual worksheet- Carl Bayley Maxfield. Florida Department of Health, Jacksonville, FL "Florida Marriage Index, 1927-2001," database of index, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 26 October 2012), Maxfield-Bidwell, certificate 131461. "Weddings: Maxfield-Bidwell," Southcoast Today, 11 February 2001; online, South Coast Today (southcoasttoday.com : accessed 18 May 2018). Donna Holden Maxfield, "Music," electronic mail to Charles A. Maxfield, 18 August 2007.
19Information on the family of Hollis from: Ruth Howe, et al, interview, 7 June 1988. Perkins, Jean Maxfield, Perkins-Maxfield Genealogy, Maxfield: Individual worksheet- Gordon Tirrell Maxfield. Worthington, Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Holbrook Research Institute (Jay and Delene Holbrook), "Massachusetts Vital and Town Records,", Worthington Marriages 1971, p. 91, e. 3, Mitchell-Maxfield, ; digital images, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 24 March 2012). Pauline Krumbholz Maxfield. Maxfield Genealogy: Supplementary Notes, about 1985, privately held by Charles A. Maxfield

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Connecticut Department of Public Health, Hartford, Connecticut. "Connecticut Divorce Index, 1968-1997." Database. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2015.

________. "Connecticut Marriage File, 1959-2012." Index. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2006.

Fairhaven Star, Fairhaven, Bristol County, Massachusetts. Archived and indexed at Milicent Library, Fairhaven, MA.

Florida Department of Health, Jacksonville, FL. "Florida Marriage Index, 1927-2001." Database of index. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2012.

Hartford Courant. Hartford, Hartford County, Connecticut. 18 January 2000.

Hingham Journal. Hingham, Plymouth County, Massachusetts. 28 September 2006.

Howe, Ruth, Judy Robinson, Charles and Pauline Maxfield. Interview by Charles A. Maxfield III, 7 June 1988. notes. Privately held by Charles A. Maxfield III, Lansdale, Pennsylvania.

Massachusetts Archives. "Vital Records of Massachusetts, 1841-1910." Digital images. American Ancestors. americanancestors.org : 2017.

Maxfield, Bertha Harriet (Tirrell). "Family Record of Charles Pope and Ellen (Nelly) Thomas Maxfiield." Notes compiled before 1938. Privately held by Charles A. Maxfield III, Lansdale, Pennsylvania.

Maxfield, Donna Holden. "Music." Electronic mail to Charles A. Maxfield. 18 August 2007.

Maxfield, Pauline Krumbholz. Maxfield Genealogy: Supplementary Notes. about 1985. Privately held by Charles A. Maxfield

New Bedford Standard Times. New Bedford, Bristol County, Massachusetts.

North Carolina State Center for Health Statistics; Department of Health and Human Services; Archives and Records Section. "North Carolina, Death Indexes, 1908-2004." Index. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2008.

Perkins, Jean H. (Maxfield). Genealogy: Perkins-Maxfield. Loose-leaf notebook compiled about 1973; privately held by Charles A. Maxfield, Lansdale, Pennsylvania.

Southcoast Today, New Bedford, Bristol County, Massachusetts. 11 February 2001. (southcoasttoday.com).

United States Department of the Census. Thirteenth Census of the United States: 1910, population. Digital images. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2018.

________. Fifteenth Census of the United States: 1930, population. Digital images. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2018.

________. Sixteenth Census of the United States: 1940, population. Digital images. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2018.

United States, Department of Veterans Affairs, Washington, DC. "Beneficiary Identification Records Locator Subsystem (BIRLS) Death File, 1850-2010." Database. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2011.

Unitd States Social Security Administration. "U.S. Social Security Death Index." Database. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2013.

Worthington, Massachusetts, Town Clerk. Holbrook Research Institute (Jay and Delene Holbrook), "Massachusetts Vital and Town Records,". Digital images. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2012.

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