Frederick Lyman Batchelder was born on January 17, 1815, in Andover, New Hampshire, the son of Odlin Batchelder (1775-1860) and his wife, Huldah Searle (1776-1846). In 1827, he moved to Holliston, Massachusetts, where his brother lived, and worked for a local shoemaking business. He attended Brown University between 1837 and 1839, and Andover Theological School from 1839 to 1842. Following his ordination as a Baptist minister, he briefly led a congregation in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts, before moving to Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he worked as a traveling preacher along the Grand River. In 1852, he moved to Stafford, Connecticut, where he presided over the local Baptist church and later served as a probate judge. He married Eliza Hall Willey (b. May 14, 1833) on January 1, 1862, and had two children: Frederick Prescott (b. October 24, 1864) and William Brainard (b. July 25, 1867). He died in East Milton, Massachusetts, on January 15, 1910.
From the guide to the Frederick Batchelder collection, Batchelder, Frederick collection, 1834-1878, 1834-1839, 1868-1878, (William L. Clements Library, University of Michigan)
