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Gc 974.402 C769p 1142872
M. L.
GENEALOGY COLLECTION
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01105 8325
Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2015
https://archive.org/details/historyofconwaym1767peas
HISTORY of CONWAY
( Massachusetts)
1767-1917
BY The People of Conway
Rev. Charles Stanley Pease, A.M.
Editor
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SPRINGFIELD PRINTING AND BINDING COMPANY SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS
1917
HISTORY of CONWAY
( Massachusetts)
1767-1917
BY The People of Conway
Rev. Charles Stanley Pease, A.M.
Editor
SPRINGFIELD PRINTING AND BINDING COMPANY SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS
1917
1142872
To the Memory of
HENRY W. BILLINGS, ESQ. 1826-1915
Fifty-four Years Town Clerk
THE FAITHFUL PUBLIC SERVANT THE TRUSTED COUNSELLOR AND FRIEND OF EVERY ONE
This Work is Respectfully . Dedicated
PREFACE
In the summer of 1900 Mr. Frederick C. Pierce of Chicago, author of the Field and other genealogies, visited Conway and began the preparation of a history of the town. He secured a mass of material which he proposed to publish in two volumes. Lack of financial support delayed the publication until the author's death in 1903. His estate proved to be insolvent and after unsuccessful attempts to sell the manuscript it was deposited with the town of Conway by permission of the Judge of Probate.
At the annual town meeting in 1914 a committee consisting of Rev. E. L. Chute, H. W. Billings, A. P. Delabarre, C. F. Elmer, and C. L. Parsons was appointed to arrange for a celebration of the 150th anniversary of Conway in 1917. Mr. Billings died in 1915 and Rev, Charles S. Pease was elected to fill the vacancy. In 1916 Mr. Chute removed from town and Mr. Alvin C. Boice succeeded him on the committee. This com- mittee was authorized by the town to publish a brief history of Conway based upon the Pierce manuscript and Rev. Charles S. Pease was appointed editor for that purpose.
In the task of preparing a history for publication the editor has been assisted by those whose names appear at the head of the various chapters. Much of the material in the Pierce manuscript proved to be of doubtful historical value and all of it was in need of careful revision. Each author has accord- ingly made independent researches and has written his chapter or section in his own way. The Genealogy has been carefully revised and to a large extent rearranged. The chapter on the first century was taken from the history of Conway's centennial
8
PREFACE.
and the chapter on the Field Library is a memorial which Dr. Rice prepared by request of the Field family. The chapter on useful men and women was written expressly for the Pierce history.
The illustrations have been contributed by different people, but we are especially indebted to the Misses Frances and Mary Allen of Old Deerfield for the use of a series of photographs taken about 1890, and to Miss Florence Howland of Conway for pictures of more recent date.
The committee has not attempted to produce a complete history of Conway. This would be impossible. The aim has been rather to prepare a readable and reasonably comprehensive account of the past one hundred and fifty years. The work has been a labor of love by Conway people, who without literary experience and with little time at their disposal for such employ- * ment have simply tried to make a permanent record of the more important facts in the history of the town.
CONWAY, MASS., March 7, 1917.
THE EDITOR.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER I .- PREVIOUS TO INCORPORATION. BY EDWARD C. BILLINGS. PAGES
Pocumtuck and the Frontier-King Philip's War-Queen Anne's War -The "Old French War"-Fort Massachusetts-The Bars Fight -The Seven Years' War-Massacre of William Henry-Conway Set Off, 15-28
CHAPTER II .- THE FIRST CENTURY. BY REV. CHARLES B. RICE, D.D.
The Settlement of Conway-Frontier Life-The First Church- Schools-Cemeteries - Roads-Localities-Clothing-War- Population-Industries-Politics-Professional Men-Destruc- tive Fires-Old Farms, 29-72
CHAPTER III .- FIFTY YEARS MORE. BY REV. CHARLES S. PEASE.
The Conway Centennial-Prosperous Conditions-Railroad Sur- veys-Electric Street Railway-Telegraph and Telephone- Improved Mail Service-Automobiles-Celebration of National Centennial-Patriotic and Social Organizations-Disasters- Cemeteries- Town Officials- Physicians- Population- Farm and Farm Life-The Outlook-Biographical Sketches,. . .. 73-101
CHAPTER IV .- THE NATURAL FEATURES OF CONWAY. BY FLORENCE MABEL PEASE.
The Beauty of Conway-Extensive Views-Rivers and Brooks- Wildwood Park-Geological Features-The Glacier Lake- Large Trees-Flowers and Ferns, 102-107
CHAPTER V .- BUSINESS AND INDUSTRY. BY EDWARD AFFHAUSER.
Farm Products-The Creamery-Manufacturing-Gristmills-Saw- Mills-Brickyards-Tanneries-Cotton Mills-Woolen Mills- Shoe Shop-Tap and Die Shop-Other Manufactories-Stores- Wagon Makers-Stage Drivers-Taverns-Harness Shops- Newspapers-Post Office-Electric Street Railway-Electric Light Company-Banks and Banking, 109-126
10
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER VI .- THE CHURCHES.
CONGREGATIONAL, BY REV. EDWARD L. CHUTE. PAGES Beginning of Public Worship-The First Minister-Succeeding Pas- tors-Work for Children-Members Received-Mission and Benevolence-Meeting Houses, 129-135
BAPTIST, BY REV. CHARLES S. PEASE.
Origin-Elder Keyes-List of Pastors-The First Meeting House- Location Changed-The Parsonage-Repairs and Improve- ments-Church Discipline-Clerks-Baptisms-Young People Trained for Service-The Church Closed, 135-146
METHODIST, BY REV. CHARLES. S. PEASE. Meetings in the South Part-Camp Meetings in Poland District- The Chapel-Meetings at Burkeville-Field's Hall-Building the Church-First Members-Pastors-Young Men Who Became Ministers-Official Members-Losses-Church Closed, .... 146-152
THE FEDERATED CHURCH, BY PROF. ALVAH J. NORMAN. Reason for the Federation-First Steps-Articles of Federation- The First United Service-Officers and Committees, . 152-155
SAINT MARK'S CHURCH, BY REV. P. H. GALLEN. The First Catholic Service in Conway-Building the Church-A Mission of Shelburne Falls-A Mission of South Deerfield- Pastors, 155-156
MINISTERS AND WIVES OF MINISTERS BORN IN CONWAY,
156-157
CHAPTER VII .- THE SCHOOLS. BY REV. W. F. AVERY, IN PART.
Schools Required of Every Township-First Appropriation in Con- way-The First Schoolhouse-Master Cole-School Districts- Graded Schools-Superintendents-College Graduates-"Hill View"-Select Schools-Conway Academy-High School, .. 158-168
CHAPTER VIII .- THE FIELD MEMORIAL LIBRARY. BY. REV. CHARLES B. RICE, D.D.
Field's Hill-The Field Family-Marshall Field-Town Libraries- The Gift of a Memorial Library-Laying the Corner Stone- Architecture of the Building-Dedication, 171-201
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CONTENTS.
CHAPTER IX .- MILITARY HISTORY. BY REV. CHARLES S. PEASE. PAGES
The Revolution, Minute Men, Other Enlistments-War of 1812- The Civil War, Recruiting, Total Enlistments by Regiments, Fallen Heroes-War with Spain, 202-211
CHAPTER X .- USEFUL MEN AND WOMEN. BY REV. W. F. AVERY.
Interesting Reminiscences of the Various Neighborhoods of the Town and the Prominent Families in Former Generations. A Remarkable List of Conway Young People Who Became Eminent in Professional and Business Life. 212-238
FAMILY GENEALOGIES. REVISED AND ARRANGED BY MISS ADA PATRICK. Genealogical Sketches of the Families That Came to Conway during the First One Hundred Years, 241-345
ILLUSTRATIONS
THE VILLAGE FROM PARSONS' HILL, Frontispiece
MAIN STREET LOOKING WEST, IN 1890, 14
THE FIRST FRAMED HOUSE IN TOWN, 34
THE PARSONAGE OF REV. JOHN EMERSON 36
CENTENNIAL ELM, SITE OF FIRST SCHOOLHOUSE, 73
DR. E. D. HAMILTON, 91
COL. AUSTIN RICE, 95
H. W. BILLINGS, EsQ., 100
PUMPKIN HOLLOW AND FIELD'S HILL, 103
ONE OF CONWAY'S GREAT ELMS, 106
GEN. JAMES S. WHITNEY, 108
CONWAY CREAMERY 111
BURKEVILLE WOOLEN MILL, 115
THE CONWAY CHURCHES, 128
SECOND CONGREGATIONAL MEETING HOUSE, 134
THE BURKEVILLE SCHOOL, 161
THE HIGH SCHOOL, 167
MARSHALL FIELD, 170
THE FIELD MEMORIAL LIBRARY 191
BURKEVILLE,
232 .
MAIN STREET LOOKING EAST, IN 1890, 240
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MAIN STREET LOOKING WEST, IN 1890.
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HISTORY OF CONWAY.
CHAPTER I. PREVIOUS TO INCORPORATION.
BY EDWARD C. BILLINGS.
POCUMTUCK AND THE FRONTIER.
"Nine miles from ye River into ye Western woods." So reads the grant by which the General Court of the province of Massachusetts, in 1712, enlarged the holdings of the Pro- prietors of Pocumtuck by adding to them the tract of land now covered by Conway. Queen Anne's War had arrested the growth of the frontier settlements of New England, but the cessation of hostilities, proclaimed at Boston in 1712, encouraged the people of Deerfield, the mother town, to drive another wedge into the wilderness and thus secure suitable commons and more lands for early settlement. Thus Conway, two hundred years ago, was carved out of the primeval forest and appro- priately given the name of Deerfield Commons. It was officially known, however, as South West District, and under this name obtained a definite position on the colonial map, as well as its first appearance in public records. But a half century was to pass-"a half century of conflict"-before any attempt was made to settle the pleasant hills and fertile bottom lands of this last grant to the Proprietors of Pocumtuck, from whom all land titles in Conway are derived.
Whatever plans may have been entertained for the immediate settlement of the South West District were destined to be frustrated by fear of Indian forays and the actual renewal of hostilities a few years later. Thus the end of "The Last French War," as it was provincially called, was contemporaneous with Conway's first settlement. For a full century the New England pioneers had lived in constant dread of the red warriors who peopled the mysterious wilderness just beyond the frontier, and during most of this period they had equally good reasons for suspecting the intentions of their white neighbors on the north,
16
HISTORY OF CONWAY.
the French. Naturally the inhabitants of Deerfield and other Massachusetts towns were in no hurry to build new homes in the "western woods" so long as Canada was governed by a Vaudreuil, whose policy it was to commit the savage Abenakis and Caughnawagas to hostility against New England, or so long as there remained a Hertel de Rouville to lead cruel marauding parties to the destruction of unoffending English hamlets and the pitiless massacre of such of the inhabitants as could not endure the hardships of captivity or be made profitable as prisoners. But with the fall of New France her Indian allies ceased to threaten New England, and the belated settlement of many hill towns, like Conway, began at once and continued to progress until the lines of the clearings reached to the very hilltops. The giants of the forest which had held undisputed sway over the pleasant hills of Conway fell rapidly before the axe of the pioneer, and as early as 1790, Conway, with more than two thousand inhabitants, had reached her high tide in population.
It will be seen from the foregoing that during the heroic days of Indian, and French and Indian, warfare, Conway was a part of Deerfield in a geographical or territorial sense only. Throughout all of that romantic period her territory remained an unbroken wilderness, still a part of "ye western woods," to revert again to the quaint and picturesque language of the grant of 1712. But there is a continuity in history which transcends geo- graphical lines and which also carries us far back of the year 1767, the date of municipal incorporation, into the heroic past. Without following this sinuous thread too far, or enlarging at great length upon the many interesting events to which it leads us, it has been thought best, for the purposes of this work, to take a brief survey of some of the more important events in the early history of the mother town, which was first called by the Indian name Pocumtuck. The people of Western Massachu- setts, and particularly the inhabitants of those towns which were carved out of the territory originally known as Pocumtuck, are indebted to the Hon. George Sheldon of Deerfield for the invaluable fund of historical truth which his many years of thorough and patient research have made available. The writer of this brief résumé has drawn freely from Mr. Sheldon's "History
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PREVIOUS TO INCORPORATION.
of Deerfield," and those who desire to further pursue the many interesting matters here referred to rather than discussed will find Mr. Sheldon's work an exhaustive depository of interesting and exact local historical information.
The original territory known as Pocumtuck was granted by the General Court to certain inhabitants of the town of Dedham in 1663. This territory was enlarged in 1670 and 1671 and, as we have already seen, by the grant of 1712, it was made to include what is to-day the town of Conway. It now included practically all of the territory covered by Deerfield, Greenfield, Gill, Shelburne, and Conway and part of Ashfield and Whately. The first settlement in this territory was made in what is still the main street of Old Deerfield in 1670 or 1671.
KING PHILIP'S WAR.
Hardly had the settlement begun before King Philip, or Metcom (his Indian name), and his plumed and painted warriors of many tribes, acting in concert under this unusually sagacious and capable chieftain, began to stalk through the frontier towns of Massachusetts, and with tomahawk and firebrand entered upon a work of desolation which for a time threatened the extinction of the colony. During this war occurred the engage- ment with the Indians near Turners Falls from which the village takes its name. This is known as the Falls Fight. Near here Capt. William Turner surprised an encampment of the warriors and punished them severely. The Indians had their revenge, however, and in the running fight which followed the attack forty-one of Captain Turner's little army of one hundred and forty-five men were killed. In 1736 the General Court made a grant of land "to be located on the north bounds of Deerfield" to the survivors of the Falls Fight and their heirs. This grant was first called Falls Fight Town, but in 1762 the settlement was incorporated as Bernardston.
In this war also occurred the Bloody Brook massacre at what is now South Deerfield, where Captain Lathrop with his picked company of one hundred young men, "the flower of Essex county," were led into an ambuscade from which but few escaped. General Hoyt, in his "Antiquarian Researches," places the total loss at ninety.
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HISTORY OF CONWAY.
One of the most romantic stories in history is connected with an Indian attack on the town of Hadley at about this time. Here the fugitive William Goffe, one of the judges who sentenced Charles I. to e ecution, was alternately concealed in the houses occupied by Mr. Russell, the minister, and Peter Tilton, a prominent man of the town. Three of these judges or "regicides," as they were called by the Royalists, escaped to America upon the restoration of the Stuarts in the person of Charles II. and went into hiding in New Haven. Determined at any cost to punish all those directly responsible for his father's ignominious death, the king sent special officers to the colonies to capture the fugitives, whereupon Goffe and his companion, Edward Whalley, fled to Hadley, where they were concealed for a number of years. Whalley died during concealment and his burial place was a secret known to but few until his bones were found by workmen in making excavations near the founda- tion of Mr. Russell's house many years later.
On Wednesday, September 1, 1675, so the story runs, the Indians attacked the town while the inhabitants were holding a service in the meeting house. Goffe, from his hiding place, seeing the attack, sallied forth, and taking charge of the defense as one used to command, the savages were put to flight. Not being able to otherwise account for the timely appearance of this venerable stranger of martial. mien, the devcut inhabitants of the town, with Puritan faith in Divine providence, believed him to be an angel sent by God for their deliverance.
Is the story of Goffe's appearance during the Indian attack on Hadley one of the myths of history? Sheldon has carefully considered the subject and written convincingly against it in an article published in the Proceedings of the Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association. It passed current, however, with his- torians of an earlier date, and the late Sylvester Judd, the careful historian of Hadley, does not question it. Those who discredit the story point to the fact that contemporary records and writers say nothing about it. On the other hand it is contended that contemporary writers naturally maintained a discreet silence in regard to the occurrence, but that the oral tradition existed many years before any one dared to publish it. Whether the story is true or false, Walter Scott, the greatest
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PREVIOUS TO INCORPORATION.
master of English fiction, has considered it good enough to incorporate into his novel, "Peveril of the Peak."
Thirteen towns were destroyed and six hundred colonists, including many women and children, were killed before the desperate settlers administered the crushing blow to Philip and his warriors at Mount Hope, R. I., in 1676. The pioneers of Deerfield, who had been driven from the town, now returned, but the settlement had received a check and the act of incor- poration was delayed until 1682.
When William III. was placed upon the throne of England, Louis XIV. promptly declared war upon his old adversary, the Prince of Orange, and his realm. This war was known in American colonies as King William's War and was the first of the several French and Indian wars from which the English colonies suffered for more than a half century. It was the occasion of an Indian attack on Deerfield in 1694. The inhab- itants, however, had taken the alarm from the attack on Schenectady and had inclosed a portion of the settlement within stout palisades from which they repulsed their foes without suffering serious loss.
QUEEN ANNE'S WAR.
For the next decade the settlement continued to grow slowly without serious check from Indian hostility, but the outbreak of Queen Anne's War brought the savages back with frightful results. During the night of February 28-29, 1704, a force of three hundred French and Indians under Major Hertel de Rouville made a descent on Deerfield, scaled the stockade on the drifted snow, and scattering themselves among the houses, butchered or made captives of one hundred and forty of the two hundred and sixty-eight inhabitants. The houses of the hamlet were built to resist assault, and many of the Indians were killed by the fire of the settlers from within, while trying to batter down the stout doors or hack holes through them with their axes and tomahawks. The door of Ensign John Sheldon's house resisted all efforts to break it down. A small aperture was finally made through which the enemy fired and killed Mrs. Sheldon. An entrance was finally effected through a rear door which had inadvertently been left open by a lad
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HISTORY OF CONWAY.
who sought safety in flight. The marauders then used the house as a cover from which to attack the neighboring dwelling of Benoni Stebbins, which was stoutly defended by its inmates. Sheldon, in his "History of Deerfield," says: "In all the wars of England, there is not a more gallant act recorded than this defense of an unfortified house, by seven men and a few women, for three hours, against, not only the fury and wiles of an unor- ganized horde of savages, but also a large force of French soldiers, under officers of the line trained in the wars of France."
The Sheldon house was set on fire when the enemy left the settlement but fortunately the flames were extinguished and it stood until 1849, becoming widely known as the "Old Indian House." Its scarred and battered door is to-day an object of great interest in the Memorial Hall at Deerfield.
The light of the burning buildings of the settlement, reflected from the fields of snow, brought small relief parties from North- ampton, Hadley, and Hatfield, and in the morning the French and Indians were driven from the town, and with their one hundred and eleven prisoners began the terrible three-hundred miles' winter march to Canada. The little band of soldiers from the towns below did not dare to press the marauders too severely for fear that the savages would massacre their prisoners rather than see them released. The captives suffered greatly on the march and, as a sort of savage mercy, the Indians did not hesitate to dispatch with the tomahawk those who were too weak longer to endure its hardships. One of the first recipients of this savage mercy was Mrs. Williams, the wife of the Deerfield minister, who had become a mother only two weeks before. In her feeble condition she had fallen to the rear and her husband had been compelled by his pitiless Indian captors to go on without her. She was one of the last of the party to ford Green River, and when knee-deep in the water she stumbled and fell. Recovering her footing, she reached the further bank but in such a weakened and benumbed con- dition that she was unable to go on, and her Indian master dispatched her with one blow of his hatchet. The sufferings of several other women and a number of small children were soon ended by similar acts of savage mercy. The Indians were well aware of the pecuniary value of their captives, whom
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PREVIOUS TO INCORPORATION.
they intended to hold for ransoms or as slaves. They were careful, therefore, not to sacrifice those who were able to endure the fatigues and privations of the march. Sometimes little children were drawn on sledges or carried on the backs of their owners. The party soon divided and took different routes, and as each prisoner was compelled to accompany his or her indi- vidual owner, families became separated. In this manner Mr. Williams was early parted from his five children.
Many of the captives were subsequently redeemed, but of the whole band, only one half ever again saw their home and friends. A number of the children, who had experienced the fascination and freedom of forest life with their Indian masters, refused, in after years, to return to their early homes, or to the ways of civilized life. Some married among the French and Indians and their blood still flows in the veins of the French and the half-breeds of Canada.
THE "OLD FRENCH WAR."
During the "Old French War" (1745-1748) Massachusetts maintained a number of garrisons in the western part of the colony in which many Hampshire county men saw service. The principal fortifications were Fort Massachusetts in East Hoosac or Adams, Fort Shirley in Heath, and Fort Pelham in Rowe. Small garrisons were also stationed at Greenfield, Northfield, Fall Town (Bernardston), Colerain, Southampton, Blandford, and Stockbridge. There were palisaded houses in Northamp- ton, Hatfield, Deerfield, Shutesbury, and New Salem. These picketed houses were usually provided with mounts or bastions from which the walls of the palisades could be defended with firearms. To avoid surprise scouting parties were continually being sent out. Col. John Stoddard of Northampton, who was a soldier at Deerfield when the town was destroyed by the French and Indians in 1704, was now in command of the Hamp- shire county men. He died June 19, 1748, but a short time before the close of the war and was succeeded by his cousin, Col. Israel Williams of Hatfield.
The capture of Louisburg in Cape Breton, June 17, 1745, was the event of this war which reflected the greatest glory upon the New England troops. Louisburg, then considered
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HISTORY OF CONWAY.
the strongest fortress in North America, surrendered to the provincial troops assisted by a British squadron, after a siege of forty-nine days. Many Deerfield and other Hampshire men took part in the siege. Many Hampshire county men also enlisted for a proposed expedition against Canada, which, however, failed to materialize because England did not send the promised army and naval forces to co-operate with the New England troops.
DEFENSE OF FORT MASSACHUSETTS AND THE "BARS FIGHT."
The heroic defense of Fort Massachusetts against seven hundred and fifty French and Indians on August 19, 1746, was one of the most memorable events of the war. At the time of the attack the garrison consisted of but twenty-one men, eleven of them on the sick list, under command of Sergt. John Hawks of Deerfield. After the fight had continued for twenty-four hours the commanding officer of the French, Pierre de Vaudreuil, a brother of the governor of Canada, came forward with a white flag and asked for a parley. At this time the fighting force of the garrison had been reduced to eight men, for whose use there remained just three rounds of ammunition per man. Such effective use had the little garrison made of its limited supply of ammunition since the beginning of the attack that the French and Indians had lost from forty to seventy men killed and wounded. De Vaudreuil promised quarter, and after prayer and consultation the garrison surrendered upon honorable terms. The promised protection was given and the prisoners were kindly treated on the return march of the French to Crown Point.
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