Bio of Robbins, Joseph Parker (b.1826) Wabasha Co., MN
=========================================================================
USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information
on the Internet, material may be freely used by non-commercial entities,
as long as this message remains on all copied material, AND permission is
obtained from the contributor of the file.
These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or
presentation by other organizations. Persons or organizations desiring to
use this material for non-commercial purposes, MUST obtain the written
consent of the contributor, OR the legal representative of the submitter,
and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent.

If you have found this file through a source other than the MNArchives 
Table Of Contents you can find other Minnesota related Archives at:
http://www.usgwarchives.net/mn/mnfiles.htm
Please note the county and type of file at the top of this page to find 
the submitter information or other files for this county.
FileFormat by Terri--MNArchives

Made available to The USGenWeb Archives by: Barbara Timm and Carol Judge
=========================================================================
This bio comes from "HISTORY OF WABASHA COUNTY" 1884.
Check out Barbara's site for more great information on this book:
http://www.rootsweb.com/~mnwabbio/wab1.htm
There are also some pictures and information from descendents for some 
of the bios on her pages.

Robbins, Joseph Parker, (page 1025), in the early spring of 1857, with his
wife and one child, arrived in Wabasha county with a small store of
household goods and eighty dollars in cash, seeking a salubrious climate
for their child, whose life had been despaired of in their old home in
Lowell, Massachusetts, where Mr. Robbins had been engaged in the fruit and
produce business. After enduring many hardships, the family finally found
a claim which they were successful in holding despite the efforts of the
land-sharks, who pursued with dogged persistence the poor pioneer who
sought to honestly acquire by his labors a home in this new country. This
claim, consisting of one hundred and sixty acres on section 29, in
Highland township, Mr. Robbins still owns, although he resides in the
village of Plainview, where he has a very pleasant home. Mr. Robbins was
born at Acton, Massachusetts, on January 14, 1826. His parents were Joseph
and Charlotte (Parker) Robbins. His education was limited to such as he
was able to acquire in a common country school, before he reached his
twelfth year. The death of his mother at this time left him homeless, and
he went from one place to another for several years. At the age of
twenty-one he was possessed of a trade which he had learned in the
shoeshop of George W. Burt, in Concord, Massachusetts, but abandoned it to
engage in the milk business. He afterward purchased and run a livery
stable for a few years, which he exchanged for the fruit and produce
business, having a store on Central street, in Lowell Massachusetts, which
he sold in order to come west and make a new home. He was married March
21, 1850, to Elizabeth Rebecca Smith, daughter of Samuel Smith, a
millwright, of Nashua, New Hampshire. This lady was born in Barton,
Vermont, December 28, 1825, where she received a good education prior to
the removal of her family to New Hampshire. Mr. and Mrs. Robbins have but
one child living, viz, Charles E. Robbins, cashier of the First National
Bank, of Fargo, Dakota, the sickly baby, whose life was saved by the
timely removal of his parents to Minnesota.