He was among the original members of the New England Tarbox Family to rise to political and academic prominence in the region.

[2] He authored numerous works on the topics of history, religion, and philosophy.

Tarbox, a conservative theologian, delivered the dedication address at the Framingham Cemetery in 1848[3] and delivered the prominent An address on the origin, progress & present condition of philosophy, to the Alpha Delta Phi Society at Hamilton College in Clinton, New York.

[4] The Framingham dedication address explained that cemeteries amplify the moral influence of Christianity.

His life was summarized in the biography Sketch of the Life of Increase Niles Tarbox in 1890, by Henry Martyn Dexter, of which two first edition copies are known, one owned by the Harvard library, and the other by his New Hampshire relatives.