USA > Connecticut > New Haven County > Waterbury > The town and city of Waterbury, Connecticut, from the aboriginal period to the year eighteen hundred and ninety-five, Volume I > Part 63
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What is known of late years as the Leather factory (5)-and prior to that as the John D. Johnson property-appears to have been first utilized in 1813, when James Scovill, Austin Steel, and the firm of Leavenworth, Hayden & Scovill, established a woollen factory there. They were compelled to close it on the opening of the market to English goods by the peace of 1815. There lies before the writer an application for insurance on the property, under the name of the Waterbury Woollen Manufacturing company. It is without date, but was probably made when the buildings were new. It describes the property as consisting of one boarding house, 36 by 40, of two stories; one factory, 54 by 34, of three stories, heated by a Russian stove; one finishing shop, 30 by 21, of two stories, all of wood; one dye house, 40 by 24, sides and ends of stone. The machinery, in- cluded in two buildings, comprised four single carding machines, one double, one picker, one jenny, twelve broad looms, one narrow loom, one shearing machine, two presses, two kettles, and two blue vats. The value of the whole (given by items) is $12,260. About 1830, Austin, Daniel and Ransom Steel, with some out-of-town capi- tal, again attempted the manufacture of woollen goods, but were not successful. John D. Johnson carried on both the woollen and a metal business there for some years, from about 1833 to 1848. The plant then became a tannery under the charge of Harlow Roys, Samuel N. Bradley, William Davis and others, which business was continued until about 1870, when the privilege was absorbed in that of the Scovill Manufacturing company.
The site of Rogers & Brother's plated ware factory (6)-or near the site-was very early a saw mill. It was probably built by Mr. Southmayd or one of his sons. William Rowley had carding and
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
cloth dressing works here about the middle of the last century, and associated with him in the business, or before him, was one George Gordian. William Rowley, Jr., succeeded his father, and they owned considerable land about there, which was long known as the Rowley farm. The privilege remained dormant for a long time, but was brought into use by Holmes, Hotchkiss, Brown & Elton about 1831, and was for many years a successful brass factory. Pins were first made in Waterbury at this place. On the site of Barnard, Son & Co.'s shear factory (7), at the Revolution, was a mill known as Hough's. It was owned by Judge Hopkins; probably Hough was the miller. Hopkins sold it to Deliverance Wakelee, who sold it to Captain George Nichols in 1781. In 1796 Joseph Payne had it. About 1835 Joel Johnson had a woollen (satinet) factory here, and later it was used for making cotton warps. There was a small shop (8) forty or fifty rods above that just mentioned, but fed by the same pond. Harmon Payne had a cloth dressing and carding machine there early in the century. It was used for awhile by Tim- othy Porter in the same business, and bone buttons were made there. It has disappeared. Rutter's leather factory (9) stands on the site of the first saw mill. This is the place where firearms were made by Ard Welton. It was owned for some years by Sher- man Bronson, and used for a button factory. This is the last privi- lege on the stream in Waterbury. Those in Wolcott will be found in Orcutt's "History." On a mere rivulet running into the east side of Rutter's pond, and near the house of Charles N. Frost, there was from 1820 to 1830 or later, a small water power utilized for a number of purposes at different times. There at one time horn and bone buttons were made in large quantities (see Volume II, note on page 260). The property seems to have belonged to the Frost family, but the name of the button maker was Leverett Judd.
GREAT BROOK.
This stream enters the Naugatuck on the eastern side at the rail- road bridge near Holmes, Booth & Haydens. The first privilege was near the corner of Canal and Meadow streets (before Meadow street was opened). The factory (I) was reached by a lane which is now Canal street, which took its name from the canal leading to the fac- tory along this line. Lemuel Harrison or James Harrison had a small building here, spoken of as a "factory, so-called," about 1800. In 1811 Orlando Porter conveyed a quarter interest in the shop to Zenas Cook, describing it as the new part of a clock shop (it had been partially destroyed by fire), and as standing on Lemuel Harri- son's land and owned in common by Lemuel Harrison, Daniel
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OLD MILLS AND EARLY MANUFACTURES.
Clark, William Porter and said Orlando Porter, doing business under the name of Lemuel Harrison & Co. The property passed into the hands of Harrison's creditors and was bought by David Prichard, who with his son, Elizur E., carried on the clock busi- ness there for a while. Later it was sold to E. E. Prichard, George Beecher, W. H. Merriman and W. H. Jones, and used as a button factory. It passed through many hands and uses, but was last used by the American Ring company under the management of Edward Chittenden. The water for the factory was taken from the brook on Grand street near South Main. In 1814 (2) a clock factory was built on the east side of South Main street between the present Jef- ferson and Union streets. The proprietors were Daniel Clark, Zenas Cook and William Porter. The water was taken from the brook at East Main street, carried in a ditch along the high land near the line of Spring street to a point below Jefferson street, and then across to the factory in a wooden trough. The enterprise was not successful. Buttons were afterward made there, but it was early converted into a dwelling house and was occupied and proba- bly owned by Ard Warner. On Brook street before it was opened was a concern (3) started by Leonard Prichard as a button factory about 1848, and afterward owned by Isaac E. Newton. It was used as a manufactory of sewing machine needles. The water was taken from about the same point as the one named above. It was aban- doned as a power about 1880.
In the rear of the buildings on the north side of East Main street, near the present west line of Elm street (4), in the early years of the century, was a building used by James M. Cook and later by Mark Leavenworth and others for a clock factory. It after- ward passed into the hands of Anson Bronson, and was used by him for the manufacture of horn and bone buttons. It was next transferred to W. & A. Brown for making hooks and eyes. Its power was finally absorbed in that of the Mattatuck Manufacturing company, now Platt Brothers. In 1848 the Mattatuck Manufacturing company (5) manufactured umbrella trimmings and cloth buttons. Its business was begun in the factory on Canal street and moved to the present site. The water is taken from the brook on Elm street near Kingsbury street, but is little used now for power. The site now occupied by the Matthews & Willard company (6) was origin- ally taken by H. Hotchkiss and others for a hook and eye factory (the first in Waterbury), conducted by John J. Hatch about 1835. Jared Pratt also manufactured cast brass andirons here. Hotch- kiss sold his interest to John Sandland, Sr. The property has changed hands many times, but is now owned by the Matthews &
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
Willard company. The site of the Waterbury Clock company (7) was one of the early saw mills of the town, owned by the Bronson family, the date not being precisely known. Dr. Bronson thought it was the town's first saw mill, but as has been shown, this was an error. It remained a saw mill until bought by the Waterbury Knitting company in 1852. It then passed into the hands of Whit- tal, Lefevre & Co., the Great Brook company, Stocker & Co., and the Clock company. A mill that stood on the north side of Cherry street near the angle (8) was the site of an early fulling mill, Nathan Prindle's. Dr. Bronson fixes the date as 1727 or '28. Mark Leaven- worth owned and occupied the site many years as a clock factory and button factory. The property passed from his estate to the Knitting company, and the power was absorbed in theirs. It is possible that this is the site sequestered to Samuel Hickox, Jr., for a fulling mill in 1692. The Waterbury Manufacturing company's privilege (9) was established by J. M. L. & W. H. Scovill in 1849, for the manufacture of german silver goods. This business was after- ward removed to Wallingford, and William R. Hitchcock & Co. occupied the factory for the manufacture of buttons, being suc- ceeded later by Hitchcock & Castle and the United States Button company. The small stone factory on Division street (10) was built by Edward Robinson about 1870 or a little earlier. It belongs to the estate of Henry C. Griggs. The privilege of the City mills, so-called (II), was established about 1850 by William Perkins. The reservoir was built mainly through the instrumentality of J. M. L. & W. H. Scovill for the benefit of the Waterbury Knitting company, but in part also for the other privileges on the stream. It was occupied by E. U. Lathrop for a feed mill for some years, and since then by Maltby, Hopson & Brooks. About 1820, Elias Clark and John Downs built a saw mill (12) nearly east of Clark's house, now Liebrecht's. Its remains were visible not long since, and probably are visible still. It was reached by a private way running from the Bucks Hill road near Clark's house to the Chestnut Hill road.
LITTLE BROOK.
This stream enters Great brook on the west side at the corner of South Main and Scovill streets. It turned the first wheel in town for strictly manufacturing purposes, that at James Harrison's clock shop, started in 1802, and standing near the corner of Spencer ave- nue and North Main street on land leased of Stephen Bronson. A few rods above this, Colonel William Leavenworth had a dis- tillery (2), which passed into the possession of Joseph Burton, and so became Mrs. Willard Spencer's. William Perkins rented it for a
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OLD MILLS AND EARLY MANUFACTURES.
carpenter's shop and put in a water wheel for sawing, etc., about 1836. Willard Spencer and Ambrose Ives in 1839 made patent but- tons there. It was afterwards changed into a dwelling and occupied by Mr. Spencer for several years. The site is now occupied by a frame dwelling next south of the brick block on the corner of North Main and Kingsbury streets.
BEAVER POND BROOK.
This stream joins Mad river at the angle near the upper end of the Waterbury Brass company's East mill pond. Its privileges in- clude (I) a saw mill between the mouths of East Mountain and Turkey Hill brook, which was built by Benjamin Farrell about 1826, and was used until about 1860. Next (2) there was a small shop belonging to Thomas Payne and used for turning wooden bowls, etc., at about 1800. Then (3) there was an ancient saw mill, about which nothing beyond its existence and disappearance has been learned. All the above appear to have been below the entrance of Turkey Hill brook. Wedge's saw mill (4) was built about 1864-5. At the crossing of a road leading to Prospect, is a privilege (5) of some importance, in use before 1800, certainly one of the earliest manufacturing sites in the town. There Andrew Hoadley and An- drew H. Johnson made spinning-wheels and other articles of wood; there Amos Atwater had a grist mill; there Sala Todd made sim- ilar goods; there Enoch W. Frost made matches, and William Sizer some light metal goods, and Lambert Russell buttons. On the road from East Farms school-house south is a saw mill (6) built by Asa Hoadley and later owned by Joseph Moss. Near the plank road there is a privilege (7) used by Orrin Austin, about 1820, for a grist mill, and for parts of clocks. It has now gone to decay. There is a saw mill (8) of modern date on one of the upper tributa- ries, perhaps in the town of Prospect.
TURKEY HILL BROOK.
This stream comes into Beaver Pond brook not far from its mouth. There was a saw mill on it in the first half of the century, owned by Isaac Hotchkiss. Joseph Payne put up a small shop near the present city reservoir about fifteen years since, which was bought by the city.
SLED HALL BROOK.
This stream enters the Naugatuck from the west near the hospi- tal. It drains Tamarack swamp, which sixty years ago was heavily wooded and yielded a very good flow of water. It is now cleared
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
and drained, and yields very little. (The writer thinks that the name of this brook is properly Sled "haul," and that it derived its name from the fact that there is a piece of still water in the Nauga- tuck near its mouth, which would freeze in winter and make a good place for crossing the river with sleds. It was just here that the first winter pioneers had their huts, and it is a fair inference that the name dates from that time; but this is conjectural.) When the place was small and the wind southwest, in the fall of the year, the sound of the stream as it came down the hill was loud and clear all through the village. It is a sound very distinctly associated in the minds of the older inhabitants with Indian summer weather, moonlight nights, a clear crisp air and many pleasant memories. There was a saw mill on this brook a little east of the Town Plot road, not far from 1750. At one time, some years later, Captain Jacob Sperry had charge of it. He fell into the penstock and broke his leg. It was said that his cries were heard in town, and that people went from there to his relief.
PARK BROOK.
This stream enters the Naugatuck near the mouth of Steel's brook. The writer gives it this name as he knows of no other, and it comes from the north end of the " park." It was utilized by Aner Bradley as a power in connection with a plating shop, on the east side of the Watertown road, between 1860 and 1870.
STEEL'S BROOK.
The privileges of Steel's brook include Slade's mill (1) at Oak ville, which was built in 1854 by Joseph H. Baird. The site now owned by the Oakville company (2) is that of the oil mill referred to in a deed of 1807, from Stephen and Daniel Matthews to Mark Leavenworth, of 24 acres of land in the south part of Watertown, " with a fulling mill, carding machine and house on the same, and an old oil mill standing near on Joseph Woodruff's land, as reserved to us in our deed to said Woodruff." It was at this point probably that James Bishop had a saw mill and grist mill about 1830. Mer- riman & Warren afterward made webbing suspenders here, and it was temporarily occupied by several other persons. Near the upper Oakville factory (3) Seba Bronson had a grist mill, probably after he sold the Baird mill on the Naugatuck near the mouth of Han- cock's brook. About the time of his death (1829) General Gerrit Smith made pewter buttons here. It then went into the hands of Scovill & Buckingham, who made brass butts and other brass goods
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OLD MILLS AND EARLY MANUFACTURES.
here. From them it was transferred to the Oakville company. The Williams grist mill (4) near the old dam has been spoken of under " Grist Mills." Bennet Hickox built a saw mill (5) near the east end of the present Oakville dam, somewhere about 1850. It was used only a short time. The mill at Rockdale (6), where Wheeler & Wilson began their sewing machine business, now owned by S. Smith & Son, seems to be the lineal descendant of a saw mill built by David Scott about 1725. In 1764, Nathaniel Arnold sold to Abraham Norton a fulling mill privilege on Wooster brook. Probably it was at this point. Heminway's silk works (7) date from about 1845. There seems to have been no mill there before. Greenville (8), so-called, was the site of Jonathan Scott's saw mill in 1722-25.
TURKEY BROOK.
This stream comes into Steel's brook at Oakville, and has a saw mill built by Samuel Copley about 1840. It was afterward owned by Eleazar Woodruff. It is now the property of F. C. Slade.
HANCOCK BROOK.
This stream joins the Naugatuck about half a mile below the village of Waterville. The first privilege is the one at Waterville (I), the history of which is given in Volume II, page 29. About half a mile up the brook is an old saw mill site (2) established about 1750 by one Scott. It was owned for many years by David Downs, and later passed into the possession of Joseph Welton. A wooden building was added twenty-five years since, which has been used by Lewis Garrigus for woodwork and by the Tucker company for the manufacture of brass nails. The "falls" (3) at Hoadley's (or Grey- stone) are within the boundaries of Plymouth. Amos Hickox, and afterward Abraham Hickox, had a saw mill here in the last century. Calvin Hoadley, later, had a grist mill here. About 1808 Silas Hoadley, at first with E. Terry and S. Thomas, after- ward by himself, began to make clocks, and continued the manu- facture with fair success for many years. It has since been used for the manufacture of cutlery and other small wares. Knouse & Allender were the last occupants.
CHAPTER XXXIX.
THE INTEREST OF EARLY CONNECTICUT IN EDUCATION - AIMS OF THE COLONISTS - FIRST SCHOOLS IN THE TOWN -CHANGES IN THE SCHOOL SYSTEM - SCHOOLS AWAY FROM THE CENTRE - SCHOOL- HOUSES-INCOME FROM SCHOOL LANDS; THREE DISTINCT SOURCES -CONDITION OF THINGS AT THE END OF THE COLONIAL PERIOD - PROVISION FOR GRAMMAR SCHOOLS- THE FIRST WATERBURY ACADEMY - THE ERECTION OF A BUILDING - TWO SCHOOLS IN IT TEACHERS - PROSPERITY AND DECLINE - REMOVALS OF THE BUILDING -- ITS LATER HISTORY.
I N the early days none of the colonies showed greater apprecia- tion of educational advantages than Connecticut. It was nat- ural that communities boasting such men as John Winthrop at New London, John Davenport at New Haven and Roger Ludlowe at Hartford should be zealous in furthering the cause of education, and it is said that in no case did a settlement defer the establish- ing of a school until the second year of its existence. As early as 1641 we find that the General Court of New Haven colony ordered "that a free school should be set up"; and the Hartford records of 1642 mention an appropriation of £30 a year to the town schools, also a decree that the schoolmaster shall be " a scholar, no common man, a gentleman," and two years later the General Court enacted that every township containing fifty householders should "appoint one within their town to teach all such childern as shall resort to him to read and write, whose wages shall be paid either by the parents or masters of such children, or by the inhabitants in general," while any township containing a hundred or more families was enjoined to "set up a grammar school." The stringent rules in reference to education found in Roger Ludlowe's Connecticut code of 1650, are of great interest. This code, which is almost identical with that enacted by the General Court of Massachusetts in 1642, decreed as follows:
Forasmuch as the good education of children is of singular behoof and benefit to any commonwealth, and, whereas many parents and masters are too indulgent and negligent of their duty in that kind; it is therefore ordered by this court and author- ity thereof, that the selectmen of every town, in the several precincts and quarters where they dwell, shall have a vigilant eye over their brethren and neighbors, to see, first, that none of them shall suffer so much barbarism in any of their families as not to endeavor to teach by themselves or others their children and apprentices so
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THE EARLY SCHOOLS AND THE FIRST ACADEMY.
much learning as may enable them perfectly to read the English tongue, and knowl- edge of the capital laws, upon penalty of twenty shillings for each neglect therein; also that all masters of families do once a week at least, catechise their children and servants in the grounds and principles of religion.
Moreover provision was therein made even for the religious instruc- tion of the Indians. .
There are those perhaps who look upon compulsory education as a novelty, but these laws of the early fathers were as strict as those of to-day, while extending in addition over the domain of religion. It is on record that the schools were established to pre- vent "that one chief project of that old deluder, Satan, to keep men from the knowledge of the Scriptures, . and that learn- ing may not be buried in the grave of our forefathers, in church and commonwealth,-the Lord assisting our endeavors." The deep sense felt by our forefathers of the importance of education is illustrated by another law which provides that such as shall "apply themselves to due use of means for the attainment of learning" shall be free from "payment of rates with respect to their per- sons,"-the immunity from taxation to last only so long as the studying should continue; and this is even more clearly demon- strated by the fact that when the project of founding a college in this section of the country seemed impracticable, the Connecticut and New Haven colonists generously aided the little college struggling along at Cambridge, Mass., by a voluntary contribution, made by each family, of "a peck of corn, or twelve pence money," towards the maintenance of poor scholars therein. In the statutes of 1702 the same provisions as the preceding are retained, with the addi- tion of an annual tax of forty shillings on every thousand pounds in the grand list, to be distributed among those towns only which maintained their schools according to law.
With various modifications in regard to details the same objects were steadily pursued throughout the colony, namely, the mainte- nance, first, of an elementary school in every neighborhood con- taining a sufficient number of children; secondly, of a Latin school in every large town; thirdly, of a college for the higher culture of the whole colony. There is no reason to doubt that the same pro- gressive spirit prevailed in Waterbury as in the other settlements. Although the first reference to schools, in the town records, occurs as late as 1698 (see page 248), it is probable that a school, taught by the younger Jeremiah Peck, had been established fully ten years before that date. We find that in 1699 the town granted thirty shillings and the "school money" for the encouragement of a school for three months. In 1702 two committees were appointed,
38
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
one to engage a schoolmaster to teach school for three months, and the other to "hire a school dame for to keep school in the summer, and for that end to make use of what money shall be left that is due to the school for the school lands, after the schoolmaster is paid." Two years later the records state that Isaac Bronson and Benjamin Barnes were chosen a committee to "hire a schoolmaster to instruct in wrighting and reeding," and to have what the coun- try (the colony) allows for that end, also to engage a dame for the summer school, renting the school lands at some public meeting, to provide funds for that purpose. The first mention of a school building appears December 8, 1707, when a committee was chosen to "see after the building of a school-house which the town by vote passed to be built." At what time this vote had passed does not appear, but two years later (December 28, 1709) the same commit- tee was reappointed to "carry on the work of building a school- house in the town," whence we may infer either that the building had not been begun, or that the work had dragged on from year to year.
Up to this point the management of school matters had been entirely conducted at town meetings. But events were so shaping themselves that a change of some kind was inevitable. As a set- tlement grew in size and population, the assembling of all the chil- dren at one point for instruction became impracticable. We find this fact recognized in an act of the General Court passed in 1712 by which the parishes or ecclesiastical societies were constituted school districts, the management of the schools, however, still remaining in the hands of the town. The act of the General Court was as follows:
All parishes which are already made, or shall hereafter be made by this Assem- bly shall have for the bringing up of their children and maintenance of a school in some fixed place the forty shillings in every {1000 arising in the list of estates within the parish.
By a natural modification the authority vested in the towns was gradually transferred to the ecclesiastical societies, and we find a later act in which not only is this implied, but a further advance indicated in the establishment of "school societies." This act decrees that " all inhabitants living within the limits of ecclesiasti- cal societies incorporated by law shall constitute school societies, and shall annually meet some time in the months of September, October or November."
These changes, which had taken place in the first years of the eighteenth century in the older towns, occurred in Waterbury somewhat later. The old school-house at the centre, which up to
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THE EARLY SCHOOLS AND THE FIRST ACADEMY.
this time had answered all the requirements of the town, had been repaired in 1720, and three years afterward the town voted that the school committee should "yearly demand the country money," the money required to be raised by the colony laws of 1712, "and also the money which the school land was let for, and pay for the school in this way." It was also voted that the committee should annu- ally make report of their receipts and disbursements at the great town meeting, and that this annual report should be put upon the pages of the records. From the report of the committee thus appointed it appears that their receipts for the year were £6 9s, and that their disbursement to the school amounted to the same sum, and that there was coming to the town "twenty-five shillings in Dr. Warner's hand, and seven shillings and six pence in Richard Welton's hand," for school lands which they had hired. "These votes and memoranda of the town clerk" says Bronson in his " History" (page 236) "prove the earnest endeavors of the early people of Waterbury, in a time of great embarrassment, to provide a means of elementary education for the young."
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