Joseph Durfee was born in Fall Rive (then Freetown) on April 27th, A.D. 1750, and died in Freetown on December 10th, A.D. 1841. He rendered distinguished service at the Battles of Long Island and White Plains in New York and at the Battle of Rhode Island. He was in command at the Battle of Fall River, fought on May 25th, 1778, when a small band of citizen soldiers gallantly repulsed an attack by 150 veterans of the British Army. Durfee was also a pioneer in the cotton manufacturing industry of Fall River and its vicinity, and he was regarded as an eminent citizen, a faithful public officer, and a man of sterling integrity who lived a long, useful, and eventful life.