Maj. Joseph Grafton (1782-1861)
Major in the 21st Infantry, Merchant & Measurer of the Boston Custom House
He was born at Salem, Massachusetts, and at the age of twelve (1794) entered the counting house of his uncle, Henry Chapman, as an apprentice. In 1803, he joined the Boston Light Infantry and in the War of 1812 he served as a Captain and then Major in the 21st Infantry under General Ripley. In 1806, he went into business on his own account in Boston as a senior partner in Grafton & Appleton, Ship Chandlers at 33 State Street with a Rope Walk in Purchase Street. After the War of 1812, he was appointed Measurer at the Boston Custom House and in 1842, Surveyor of the Port of Boston. He lived on Carver Street in Boston, married, and had seven children.
