James R. Hopkins (1836 - 1918)

Born 10 Jan 1836 in Cambridge, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States

Died 30 Nov 1918 at age 82 in Somerville, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States

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Biography

Private James Hopkins served in the United States Civil War.
Enlisted: Apr. 19, 1861
Mustered out: July 31, 1861
Side: USA
Regiment(s): 5th Mass. Infantry

James was born in East Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1836, the son of Thomas and Isabelle (Hunter) Hopkins. He grew up in Cambridge, attending local schools.^[1] The family removed to neighboring Somerville, Massachusetts, in 1855, and he joined the fire department the following year.^[2]

James was 25 years old in 1861 when the Civil War broke out. He mustered in as a private in Company I of the 5th Mass. Infantry, on May 1, 1861. He mustered out at the end of a 3-month term, on July 31, 1861.^[3] He then re-enlisted, serving in the office of Quartermaster-General Butler in the Department of the Gulf.

He married in 1862 to Susan Cutter Moore, daughter of Abraham and Charlotte (Cutter) Moore. They had two children:^[4] Charlotte (b. 1866) and James Wesley (b. 1875).

He worked for the fire department of Somerville, starting when he was barely a teenager as a volunteer and eventually working his way up to Chief Engineer. He was also an inventor of several inventions to enhance firefighting, including the Hopkins Helmet,^[5] an aluminum headgear that was used by some cities as late of the 1970's.^[6] He and his men wired the first fire telegraph system. He was one of the founders of The National Association of Fire Engineers and the Massachusetts Fire Chiefs' Club. It is said that during his last decade on the job, his men called him "Uncle Bill", in reference to his physical resemblance to President Taft.

He died at his home on Summit Avenue in Somerville in 1918. He was 82 years old.^[7] He is buried at the Woodlawn Cemetery in Everett, Massachusetts.

Research Note

Brother-in-law of William Francis Moore.

Sources

1. ↑ "United States Census, 1850," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MDS3-HSM : 22 December 2020), James R Hopkins in household of Thomas Hopkins, Cambridge, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States
2. ↑ The Somerville Journal Souvenir of the Semi-Centennial, 1842-1892, p. 28
3. ↑ The American Civil War Research Database", accessed 5 January 2021, James R. Hopkins
4. ↑ "United States Census, 1900," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M9TX-GDK : accessed 5 January 2021), James R Hopkins, Somerville city Ward 3, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States
5. ↑ Google Patents, Fireman's Hat, USD769534S1, 1889
6. ↑ The Somerville Times, Historical Fact of the Week, 3 February 2016, accessed 5 January 2021
7. ↑ "Massachusetts State Vital Records, 1841-1920," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:23T4-G3Z : 22 October 2019), James R Hopkins, 30 Nov 1918