USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > History of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, 1622-1918, vol 1 > Part 1
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org.
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58
L
X
K.
1800
3H
Glass
F-72
Book.
N8C7
HISTORY OF
NORFOLK COUNTY MASSACHUSETTS 1622-1918
LOUIS A. COOK SUPERVISING EDITOR
ILLUSTRATED
VOLUME 1
-
NEW YORK-CHICAGO THE S. J. CLARKE PUBLISHING COMPANY 1918
F72
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
LOCATION, BOUNDARIES AND EXTENT-SURFACE AND SOIL-WATERCOURSES- GEOLOGY-WORK OF DODGE AND CROSBY-DEVONIAN ROCKS-THE SHAWMUT I GROUP-THE GLACIAL EPOCH.
CHAPTER II EARLY EXPLORATIONS
EFFECT IN EUROPE OF COLUMBUS' DISCOVERY OF AMERICA-TIIE CABOTS-GOSNOLD'S EXPEDITION-PRING AND BROWNE-WEYMOUTH'S EXPEDITION-LONDON AND PLYMOUTH COMPANIES-SMITH'S EXPLORATIONS-CAPT. THOMAS DERMER- FRENCII EXPLORATIONS-CONFLICT OF FRENCHI AND ENGLISH INTERESTS - ENGLISH CLAIMS SUSTAINED. 7
CHAPTER III INDIAN HISTORY
DISTRIBUTION OF INDIAN TRIBES AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SIXTEENTH CEN- TURY-NEW ENGLAND TRIBES-THE MASSACIIUSETT-NARRAGANSETT-NIP- MUCK-THE PEQUOT WAR-THE WAMPANOAG-KING PHILIP'S WAR-THE PRAYING INDIANS-INDIAN DEEDS TO THE LAND. 13
CIIAPTER IV THE FIRST SETTLEMENTS
RELIGIOUS CONDITIONS IN ENGLAND AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY-THE PILGRIMS AND PURITANS-IMMIGRATION TO AMERICA-GREAT PATENT FOR NEW ENGLAND-THE MAYFLOWER-THE COMPACT-THE WESTON COLONY-ROBERT GORGES-THE DORCHESTER COMPANY-THE MASSACHUSETTS COMPANY-TRANSFER OF THE CHARTER-SETTLEMENTS IN 1630. ... .. 23
iv
CONTENTS
CHAPTER V
PIONEER LIFE AND CUSTOMS
CONDITIONS NOW AND THEN-THE FIRST HOUSES-HEAT AND LIGHT-FURNITURE AND UTENSILS -- FOOD AND CLOTHING-MISCELLANEOUS FEATURES OF PIONEER LIFE . 20
CHAPTER VI
ORGANIZATION OF NORFOLK COUNTY
FIRST COUNTIES IN NEW ENGLAND-OLD NORFOLK COUNTY-DIVISION OF SUFFOLK- THE SECOND PETITION-A THIRD EFFORT-THE FOURTH PETITION-THE FIFTH PETITION-THE SIXTH PETITION-A LONG DELAY-UNDER THE CONSTITUTION- SUCCESS AT LAST-LOCATING THE COUNTY SEAT. 35
CHAPTER VII
PUBLIC BUILDINGS OF NORFOLK COUNTY
TIIE FIRST COURT-HOUSE-THE SECOND COURT-HOUSE-FATE OF THE OLD COURT- HOUSE-COURT-HOUSE OF 1861-THE PRESENT COURT-IIOUSE-THE DEDICATION -COURT-HOUSE AT QUINCY-THE COUNTY JAIL-THE REGISTRY BUILDING- VALUE OF COUNTY BUILDINGS. 42
CHAPTER VIII
THE NEW ENGLAND TOWNSHIP
TWO KINDS OF TOWNSIIIPS IN THE UNITED STATES-THE DIFFERENCE-THIE ANGLO- SAXON TUNSCIPE-ORIGIN OF THE TOWNSHIP-PATENTS ISSUED BY THE PLYMOUTH COMPANY-FIRST TOWN MEETINGS IN NEW ENGLAND-THEIR INFLUENCE IN THE REVOLUTION-JEFFERSON ON THE TOWNSHIP FORM OF GOV- ERNMENT-TOWNSHIPS OF THE SOUTH AND WEST COMPARED WITH NEW ENG- LAND-IN STATE AND NATIONAL AFFAIRS. 51
CHAPTER IX THE TOWN OF AVON
LOCATION AND BOUNDARIES-PETITION FOR INCORPORATION-IN THE LEGISLA- TURE-EXTENDING THE BOUNDARIES-WATERWORKS-TOWN HALL-MISCEL- LANEOUS FACTS ABOUT AVON 55
V
CONTENTS
CHAPTER X
THE TOWN OF BELLINGHAM
GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE TOWN-FIRST SETTLEMENT-DIVIDING THE LAND- INCORPORATION-FIRST TOWN MEETING-A BOUNDARY DISPUTE-TROUBLE WITH THE GENERAL COURT-A COINCIDENCE-NEW STATE GOVERNMENT-EFFORTS TO FORM A NEW TOWN-TOWN HALL-WATERWORKS-VITAL STATISTICS-ODD LEGISLATION-THE BELLINGHAM OF TODAY. 60
CHAPTER XI
THE TOWN OF BRAINTREE
LOCATION AND BOUNDARIES-SURFACE AND DRAINAGE-FIRST WHITE MEN-BRAIN- TREE INCORPORATED-PETITION OF 1645-SAMUEL GORTON-NEW BRAINTREE- THE PRECINCTS-THE FIRST MILL-TOWN HALL-SOLDIERS' MONUMENT- WATERWORKS-ELECTRIC LIGHT WORKS-FIRE DEPARTMENT-POSTOFFICES-A FEW FIRST THINGS-BRAINTREE IN 1917-TOWN OFFICERS. 7I
CHAPTER XII THE TOWN OF BROOKLINE
LOCATION, BOUNDARIES AND EXTENT-TOPOGRAPHY-THE HOOKER GRANT-ALLOT- MENTS OF LAND-FIRST MOVE FOR SEPARATION FROM BOSTON-INCORPORATION OF BROOKLINE-FIRST ELECTION-ADJUSTING THE BOUNDARIES-TOWN HALL- WATERWORKS-FIRE DEPARTMENT-PUNCH BOWL TAVERN -- BROOKLINE OF THE 83 PRESENT
CHAPTER XIII
THE TOWN OF CANTON
LOCATION, BOUNDARIES AND DESCRIPTION-EARLY HISTORY-CANTON INCORPO- RATED-THE PETITION AND ITS SIGNERS-FIRST TOWN MEETING-TOWN HALL -WATERWORKS-FIRE DEPARTMENT-GAS WORKS-POSTOFFICE-THE DOTY TAVERN-EARLY ORDINANCES-CANTON IN 1917. .99
CHAPTER XIV THE TOWN OF COHASSET
GENERAL DESCRIPTION-FIRST WHITE MEN AND SETTLEMENT-DIVIDING THE LAND -THE HINGHAM REBELLION-DISTRICT OF COHASSET-FIRST TOWN MEETING- TOWN HALL-COHASSET WATER COMPANY-FIRE DEPARTMENT-ELECTRIC LIGHT-MISCELLANEOUS IO7
vi
CONTENTS
CHAPTER XV
THE TOWN OF DEDHAM
GENERAL DESCRIPTION-SETTLEMENT AND GRANT-THE COVENANT-THE TOWN INCORPORATED-NAMING THE TOWN-ORIGINAL TERRITORY-A FEW PIONEERS- FIRST TOWN OFFICERS-DEDHAM IN 1664-TRAINING GROUND-EARLY MILLS- DEDHAM ISLAND-PETUMTUCK-OLD-TIME TAVERNS-FIRE DEPARTMENT- DEDHAM WATER COMPANY-MEMORIAL HALL-THE TOWN SEAL-POSTOFFICE- THE DEDHAM OF THE PRESENT. I17
CHAPTER XVI THE TOWN OF DOVER
LOCATION AND BOUNDARIES-TOPOGRAPHY-EARLY SETTLERS-POLITICAL HISTORY -THE PRECINCT-SPRINGFIELD PARISH-THE DISTRICT-THE TOWN-FIRST OFFICERS -- TOWN HALL-TOWN SEAL-POSTOFFICES-FIRE DEPARTMENT-EARLY TAVERNS-THE TOWN NAME-SUNDRY INCIDENTS-DOVER IN 1917. .. I34
CHAPTER XVII THE TOWN OF FOXBORO
FORM OF NAME-LOCATION, BOUNDARIES AND TOPOGRAPHY-EARLY HISTORY-FIRST SETTLERS-INCORPORATION OF THE TOWN-FIRST TOWN MEETING-ADJUSTING THE BOUNDARIES-TYPICAL PIONEERS-TOWN HALL-MEMORIAL HALL-WATER- WORKS-FIRE DEPARTMENT-TRANSPORTATION-FOXBORO IN 1917. 145
CHAPTER XVIII THE TOWN OF FRANKLIN
LOCATION AND GENERAL DESCRIPTION-THE PRECINCT-SOME POINTED INSTRUC- TIONS-THE TOWN INCORPORATED-NAMING THE TOWN-FIRST TOWN MEET- ING-FRANKLIN'S PATRIOTISM-FIRST MILLS-WATERWORKS-FIRE DEPART- MENT - POSTOFFICE - ALMSIIOUSE - FINANCIAL -THE FRANKLIN OF THE PRESENT 153
CHAPTER XIX THE TOWN OF HOLBROOK
GENERAL DESCRIPTION-POLITICAL HISTORY-RANDOLPH OPPOSED TO TIIE ORGANI- ZATION OF A NEW TOWN-TIIE ORGANIC ACT-EARLY TOWN MEETINGS-TOWN HALL-HOW TIIE TOWN WAS NAMED-TIIE TOWN SEAL-WATERWORKS-FIRE DEPARTMENT-SOLDIERS' MONUMENT-HOLBROOK TODAY-TOWN OFFICERS. 163
vii
CONTENTS
CHAPTER XX
THE TOWN OF MEDFIELD
IN THE BEGINNING-AS A PART OF DEDIIAM-NEW TOWN FIRST PROPOSED-PETI- TION TO GENERAL COURT-THE RESULT-OTHER TERRITORY SET ASIDE-THE NAME-AGREEMENT AND COMMITTEE-FIRST HOUSE LOTS-FURTHER SETTLE- MENTS-SURRENDER OF JURISDICTION-INCORPORATION-A DISCREPANCY IN DATES-FIRST YEARS OF EXISTENCE-DIVISION OF THE TOWN-DIVISION OF COUNTY-POPULATION-POSTOFFICE-THE TOWN HALL-PROMINENT EARLY CITIZENS-PUBLIC LIBRARY-PUBLIC UTILITIES-FIRST VITAL STATISTICS-FIRST VALUATIONS-MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS OF INTEREST. 170
CHAPTER XXI
THE TOWN OF MEDWAY 1
ORIGINAL OWNERSHIP-FIRST GRANT OF LAND- THE FIRST ACTUAL SETTLER-THE STONE HOUSE-FIRST LOTS LAID OUT-THE NEW GRANT-DIVISION OF LOTS- MEETING HOUSE STRIFE - INCORPORATION - THE NAME - THE ORIGINAL FOUNDERS-POPULATION-FIRST TOWN MEETING-HIGHWAYS-POSTOFFICES- MUNICIPAL IMPROVEMENT-CEMETERIES-ITEMS OF INTEREST. 185
CHAPTER XXII
THE TOWN OF MILLIS
LOCATION-BOUNDARIES-SURFACE AND DRAINAGE-FIRST SETTLEMENT-DIVISION OF MEDWAY-THE TOWN NAME-TOWN HALL-WATERWORKS-FIRE DEPART- MENT-GENERAL CONDITIONS IN 1917-TOWN OFFICERS. 197
CHAPTER XXIII
THE TOWN OF MILTON
LOCATION AND BOUNDARIES-TOPOGRAPIIY-WHITE OCCUPATION-THE TOWN IN- CORPORATED-THE TOWN NAME-EARLY TAVERNS-TOWN HALL-POSTOFFICES- WATERWORKS-FIRE DEPARTMENT- FINANCIAL IIISTORY-A FEW FIRST THINGS -OLD FAMILIES-MILTON IN 1917-TOWN OFFICERS. 203
CHAPTER XXIV
THE TOWN OF NEEDHAM
ORIGINALLY PART OF DEDHAM-LOCATION AND BOUNDARIES-SURFACE-INDIAN OCCUPATION-FIRST SETTLEMENT- PETITION TO BE SET OFF AS A TOWN-THE
viii
CONTENTS
TOWN INCORPORATED-FIRST TOWN MEETING-CHANGING THE BOUNDARIES- TOWN HALL-WATERWORKS-FIRE DEPARTMENT-ELECTRIC LIGHT-POSTOF- FICES-A HISTORIC MONUMENT-TOWN SEAL-MODERN NEEDHAM. 213
CHAPTER XXV
THE TOWN OF NORFOLK
LOCATION, BOUNDARIES AND TOPOGRAPHY-EARLY HISTORY-NORTH PARISH OF WRENTHAM-INCORPORATION OF THE TOWN-FIRST TOWN MEETING-TOWN HALL-POSTOFFICES-THE PRESENT NORFOLK. .220
CHAPTER XXVI
THE TOWN OF NORWOOD
LOCATION, BOUNDARIES AND SURFACE-FIRST SETTLEMENT-THE SOUTH PRECINCT -FIRST PRECINCT MEETING-LOCATING THE MEETING HOUSE-CHANGING THE BOUNDARY-TOWN OF NORWOOD INCORPORATED-FIRST TOWN OFFICERS- TOWN SEAL-PRESENT DAY CONDITIONS-TOWN OFFICERS FOR 1917. .225
CHAPTER XXVII THE TOWN OF PLAINVILLE
GENERAL DESCRIPTION-EARLY HISTORY-PETITION FOR INCORPORATION-THE ORGANIC ACT-FIRST TOWN MEETING-DIVISION OF PROPERTY-THE TOWN SEAL-MISCELLANEOUS-TOWN OFFICERS FOR 1917. 233
CHAPTER XXVIII
THE CITY OF QUINCY
GENERAL DESCRIPTION-SETTLEMENT-MERRYMOUNT-GOVERNOR ENDICOTT-PART OF BRAINTREE-THE TOWN INCORPORATED-FIRST TOWN MEETING-AN EARLY CUSTOM-TOWN HALL-QUINCY GRANITE-POSTOFFICES-CITIZENS GAS COM- PANY-INCORPORATED AS A CITY-WATERWORKS- FIRE DEPARTMENT-MODERN QUINCY-CITY GOVERNMENT 239
CHAPTER XXIX THE TOWN OF RANDOLPH
GENERAL DESCRIPTION-CIVIC HISTORY-PETITION FOR DIVISION OF BRAINTREE- THE REMONSTRANCE-ACT OF INCORPORATION-THE TOWN NAME-FIRST TOWN MEETINGS-DIVISION OF RANDOLPH-TOWN HALL-FIRE DEPARTMENT-WATER- WORKS-RANDOLPHI TODAY-ROSTER OF TOWN OFFICERS IN 1917. 250
ix
CONTENTS
CHAPTER XXX
THE TOWN OF SHARON
LOCATION AND BOUNDARIES-TOPOGRAPHY-EARLY HISTORY-PETITION FOR A PRE- CINCT-THIE ANSWER-FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR-DISTRICT OF STOUGIITONHAM -FIRST DISTRICT OFFICERS-THE FIRST CANNON-BUNKER HILL-THE TOWN OF SHARON-POSTOFFICES-TOWN HALL-WATERWORKS-FIRE DEPARTMENT- MODERN SHARON-TOWN OFFICERS. 257
CHAPTER XXXI
THE TOWN OF STOUGHTON
GENERAL DESCRIPTION-THIE NEW GRANT-EVOLUTION OF STOUGHTON-WILLIAM STOUGHTON-THE REVOLUTIONARY PERIOD-A STATE GOVERNMENT-STOUGH- TON'S RESOLUTIONS ON THE SUBJECT-SALTPETRE-WATERWORKS-FIRE DEPART- MENT- TOWN OFFICERS-THE PRESENT STOUGHTON 265
CHAPTER XXXII
THE TOWN OF WALPOLE
LOCATION AND BOUNDARIES- EARLY HISTORY-INCORPORATION OF WALPOLE-OR- GANIC ACT-THIE TOWN NAME-THE MEETING HOUSE-FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR-TOWN HALL-THE FOUNTAIN-WATERWORKS-FIRE DEPARTMENT-WAL- POLE OF THE PRESENT-TOWN OFFICERS. .272
CHAPTER XXXIII
THE TOWN OF WELLESLEY
GENERAL DESCRIPTION-HISTORICAL-INCORPORATION OF THE TOWN-NAMING THE TOWN-FIRST OFFICERS-TOWN HALL-POSTOFFICES-TOWN SEAL-WATER- WORKS-ELECTRIC LIGHT-FIRE DEPARTMENT-SEWER SYSTEM-PUBLIC BATH HOUSE-MODERN WELLESLEY-TOWN OFFICERS. 278
CHAPTER XXXIV THE TOWN OF WESTWOOD
GENERAL DESCRIPTION-EARLY HISTORY- THIRD PARISH OF DEDHAM-WESTWOOD INCORPORATED-ACT OF INCORPORATION-FIRST TOWN MEETING-TOWN HALL- POSTOFFICES-FIRE DEPARTMENT-TOWN OFFICERS, 1917-WESTWOOD OF TO- 285 DAY
x
CONTENTS
CHAPTER XXXV
THE TOWN OF WEYMOUTH
LOCATION AND BOUNDARIES-SURFACE AND DRAINAGE-SETTLEMENT-THE GORGES COMPANY-THE HULL COMPANY-ADJUSTING THE BOUNDARIES-THE INDIAN TITLE-EARLY LANDOWNERS-INDIAN WARS-THE SOUTH PRECINCT-ATTEMPT TO DIVIDE TIIE TOWN-ALMSHOUSES-POSTOFFICES-SOLDIERS' MONUMENT- WATERWORKS-FIRE DEPARTMENT-ELECTRIC LIGHT-TOWN HALL-FISHERIES -FINANCIAL HISTORY -- WEYMOUTHI OF THE PRESENT-TOWN OFFICERS. 280
CHAPTER XXXVI THE TOWN OF WRENTHAM
GENERAL DESCRIPTION-HISTORICAL-THE PLANTATION OF WOLLOMONOPOAG-IN- CORPORATION OF WRENTHAM-ORGANIZING THE TOWN-WRENTHAM VACATED- PERMANENT SETTLEMENT-SOME FIRST THINGS-THE TOWN DIVIDED-WATER- WORKS-FIRE DEPARTMENT-TOWN HALL-SOLDIERS' MONUMENT-MODERN WRENTHAM-TOWN OFFICERS, 1917. 301
CHAPTER XXXVII THE REVOLUTION
NORFOLK COUNTY NOT IN EXISTENCE AT TIIE TIME OF TIIE WAR-EARLY CONDI- TIONS IN THE COLONIES-LOYALTY OF TIIE COLONISTS-THE STAMP ACT-THE PILLAR OF LIBERTY-THE BOSTON TEA PARTY-TIIE BOSTON PORT BILL-THE SUFFOLK RESOLVES-WORK OF THE TOWNS-BELLINGHAM-BRAINTREE- BROOKLINE - COHASSET - DEDHAM - MEDFIELD - MEDWAY - MILTON - NEEDIIAM-STOUGHTON-WALPOLE-WEYMOUTH-WRENTIIAM 310
CHAPTER XXXVIII WAR OF 1812-MEXICAN WAR
WAR OF 1812-RIGHT OF SEARCH-OTHER CAUSES OF THE WAR-NAPOLEON'S DECREES - BRITISH ORDERS IN COUNCIL - WAR DECLARED - IN NORFOLK COUNTY-WAR WITH MEXICO-ITS CAUSES-ARMY OF OCCUPATION-NORFOLK COUNTY IN THIE WAR. 327
CHAPTER XXXIX WAR OF THE REBELLION
TIIE SLAVERY QUESTION-CONDITIONS IN 1819-THE MISSOURI COMPROMISE- POLITICAL CAMPAIGN OF 1860-SECESSION OF THE SOUTHERN STATES-STAR OF
xi
CONTENTS
THE WEST-FALL OF FORT SUMTER-LINCOLN'S PROCLAMATION CALLING FOR TROOPS-ANSWER OF MASSACHUSETTS-WHAT THE TOWNS DID-RECAPITULA- TION 333
CHAPTER XL FINANCIAL HISTORY
COUNTY FINANCES-RECEIPTS AND EXPENDITURES-ASSETS AND LIABILITIES-
BANKING INSTITUTIONS-TIIE LAND BANK-NORFOLK COUNTY BANKS- SKETCHES OF BANKS IN THE ORDER OF THEIR ESTABLISHMENT-COOPERATIVE BANKS-NORWOOD'S MORRIS PLAN BANK. 344
CHAPTER XLI MANUFACTURING
FIRST NEEDS OF THE PIONEERS-BOOTS AND SHOES-IRON WORKS-COTTON AND WOOLEN GOODS-PAPER AND WOOD PULP-STRAW GOODS-MISCELLANEOUS MANU- FACTURES-STATISTICAL TABLE FOR 1915. 352
CHAPTER XLII INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS
TASK OF THE PIONEERS-MOTHER BROOK-EARLY HIGHWAYS-TURNPIKES-STAGE LINES-THE RAILROAD ERA-TIIE GRANITE RAILWAY-FIRST RAILROAD CHARTERS -THE DEDHAM BRANCH-OLD COLONY RAILROAD-NORFOLK COUNTY RAILROAD- OTHER RAILROADS-ELECTRIC RAILWAY LINES-FORE RIVER IMPROVEMENT. . 362
CHAPTER XLIII
THE BENCH AND BAR
COLONIAL LAWS-BODY OF LIBERTIES-UNDER THE CONSTITUTION-NORFOLK COURT OF COMMON PLEAS-CIRCUIT COURT OF COMMON PLEAS-COURT OF SESSIONS- COURT OF PROBATE-DISTRICT COURTS-DISTRICT JUSTICES-THE BAR-SKETCHES OF EARLY LAWYERS-BAR ASSOCIATION. 370
CHAPTER XLIV THE MEDICAL PROFESSION
MEDICINE AMONG THE ANCIENTS-CHINA-EGYPT-THE HEBREWS-INDIA-GREECE -HARVEY AND SYDENHAM-EARLY NORFOLK PHYSICIANS- BRIEF SKETCHES OF PROMINENT DOCTORS-FIRST VACCINATION IN AMERICA-THE NINETEENTH CEN- TURY-MEDICAL SOCIETIES-HOMEOPATHY-DOCTOR MORTON. 380
xii
CONTENTS
CHAPTER XLV
EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
DEDHAM SCHOOL TABLET-FIRST FREE PUBLIC SCIIOOL IN AMERICA-FIRST SCHOOL HOUSE - EARLY TEACHERS - AMES SCHOOL - OTHER EARLY SCHOOLS - PUBLIC SCHOOL STATISTICS-ADAMS ACADEMY-BROOKLINE CLASSICAL SCHOOL-DEAN ACADEMY-WOODWARD INSTITUTE-WELLESLEY COLLEGE-THAYER ACADEMY- WEYMOUTH AND BRAINTREE ACADEMY-UNION TRAINING SCHOOL-AGRICUL- TURAL SCHOOL-MISCELLANEOUS 389
CHAPTER XLVI
NORFOLK COUNTY PRESS
THE COLUMBIAN MINERVA-EARLY DEDHAM NEWSPAPERS-QUINCY PATRIOT-THE AURORA-EARLY NEWSPAPERS OF FOXBORO-RANDOLPH-STOUGHTON-WEY- MOUTH - BROOKLINE - FRANKLIN - NEEDHAM - WALPOLE - BRAINTREE - MILTON-NEWSPAPERS IN 1917-LIST ARRANGED BY TOWNS. 398
CHAPTER XLVII
LIBRARIES AND HISTORICAL SOCIETIES
LAWS RELATING TO PUBLIC LIBRARIES-A FREE PUBLIC LIBRARY IN EVERY TOWN IN NORFOLK COUNTY-BRIEF HISTORY OF EACH-HISTORICAL SOCIETIES AND THEIR OBJECT - DEDHAM - CANTON - WEYMOUTHI - MEDFIELD - HOLBROOK - FOXBORO-WALPOLE-MEDWAY-MILTON-QUINCY 404
CHAPTER XLVIII
CHURCH HISTORY
CHURCHES ORIGINALLY SUPPORTED BY TAXATION-CONSTITUTION OF 1820-DIFFI- CULTY OF WRITING CHURCH HISTORY-ARRANGEMENT BY DENOMINATIONS- THE BAPTISTS-THE CATHOLICS --- CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH-BRIEF SKETCHES OF THE VARIOUS SOCIETIES. . 421
CHAPTER XLIX
CHURCH HISTORY, CONTINUED
EPISCOPAL CHURCH-METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH-UNITARIAN CHURCH-THE UNIVERSALISTS-MISCELLANEOUS CIIURCH ORGANIZATIONS. .... . 435
xiii
CONTENTS
CHAPTER L
FRATERNAL SOCIETIES, ETC.
MASONIC FRATERNITY-NORFOLK COUNTY MASONRY-THE HIGHER DEGREES-ORDER OF THE EASTERN STAR-INDEPENDENT ORDER OF ODD FELLOWS-ODD FELLOW- SHIP IN NORFOLK COUNTY-ENCAMPMENTS-DAUGHTERS OF REBEKAH- KNIGHTS OF PYTHIAS-NORFOLK COUNTY KNIGHTS-GRAND ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC-NORFOLK COUNTY POSTS-WOMEN'S RELIEF CORPS-MISCELLANEOUS SOCIETIES-SOCIAL AND LITERARY CLUBS. .447
CHAPTER LI ILLUSTRIOUS SONS
JOHN ADAMS-JOHN QUINCY ADAMS-JOHN HANCOCK-PAUL REVERE-FISHER AMES-HORACE MANN -- WILLIAM T. ADAMS-ELEAZAR SMITH-WILLIAM M. THAYER-ALBERT D. RICHARDSON-HANNAH ADAMS-MARY E. WILKINS FREE- MAN-A LITERARY GROUP .459
CHAPTER LII MISCELLANEOUS HISTORY
LOST TOWNS-DORCHESTER-ROXBURY-WEST ROXBURY-HYDE PARK-QUAKER PERSECUTIONS-A FEW LANDMARKS-THE FAIRBANKS HOUSE-THE PEAKE HOUSE-ADAMS HOUSES-THE AVERY OAK-INDIAN ROCK-DEDHAM POWDER HOUSE-OTHER LANDMARKS-DISTINGUISHED VISITORS-LAFAYETTE-JACKSON -LINCOLN-BENEVOLENT INSTITUTIONS 467
CHAPTER LIII
STATISTICAL REVIEW
CENSUS REPORTS SINCE 1790-COMPARATIVE TABLE OF POPULATION BY TOWNS FOR 1910 AND 1915-OFFICIAL ROSTER-LIST OF PRINCIPAL COUNTY OFFICERS FROM 1793 TO 1917 - CLERKS - SHERIFFS - TREASURERS - REGISTERS OF DEEDS - COUNTY COMMISSIONERS 476
CHAPTER LIV
CHRONOLOGICAL SUMMARY
FROM OCTOBER 12, 1492, TO SEPTEMBER 14, 1917. . ... 480
Louis a look.
History of Norfolk County
CHAPTER I
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
LOCATION, BOUNDARIES AND EXTENT-SURFACE AND SOIL-WATERCOURSES- GEOLOGY-WORK OF DODGE AND CROSBY-DEVONIAN ROCKS-THE SHAWMUT GROUP-THE GLACIAL EPOCH.
LOCATION AND BOUNDARIES
Norfolk County is situated in the eastern part of the state. Two of its towns -Brookline and Cohasset-are segregated, the former being entirely surrounded by parts of Suffolk County, and the latter by parts of Plymouth County and Massachusetts Bay. With these exceptions the county is bounded, generally, on the north by the counties of Middlesex and Suffolk and the Massachusetts Bay ; on the east by Massachusetts Bay and the County of Plymouth; on the south by Plymouth and Bristol counties ; on the southwest by the State of Rhode Island, and on the west by the counties of Worcester and Middlesex. The county is irregular in shape, straight lines forming the boundaries between Norfolk and Plymouth, Bristol and Worcester counties and the State of Rhode Island, while the other boundaries are represented by lines that do not follow the points of the compass, among them being the curves of the Charles River and the ragged coast line of Massachusetts Bay. Its greatest extent-from Cohasset Harbor to the southwest corner of the county-is about thirty-six miles, and from the most northern point of the Town of Wellesley to the Bristol County line the distance is seventeen miles.
SURFACE AND SOIL
While much of the surface of Norfolk County is broken and uneven, no por- tion of it can be considered mountainous. The most noted elevations are the Blue Hills, in the Town of Milton ; Great Hill and King Oak Hill, in Weymouth; the Brookline Hills ; Wellesley Hills, in the northern part of Wellesley; Indian Rock, in Franklin; Federal Hill, in Dedham; and the ridge in the central part of Westwood, from which a commanding view of the surrounding country may be obtained. As a rule, the soil of hilly countries is not noted for its fertility, but much of the soil of Norfolk County is strong, especially the lowlands along the Charles and Neponset rivers, and is capable of producing good crops of grains and vegetables adapted to this latitude. The following description of the Vol. I-1
1
2
HISTORY OF NORFOLK COUNTY
land along these rivers, as the first settlers found it, is taken from Worthington's History of Dedham.
"The meadows on Neponset River were so far cleared of trees and under- wood that they produced grass. The inhabitants of Dedham, in the beginning of their settlement, hired those meadows of Israel Stoughton for a pasture for their young cattle. A tradition existed at an early period that the grass, called 'fowl meadow,' which is superior to that of any other kind in the fresh water meadows, was first brought to the meadows in Dedham by a large flight of wild fowls, and that from thence the meadows and the grass received their names. It is supposed that the Charles River meadows have gradually arisen from a broken, impenetrable swamp, covered with fallen trees, and the greatest part of the time covered with water, to their present state. The grass in many places has much improved in quality within the present recollection. A coat of peat, from three to four feet in depth, covers these meadows and may have been principally formed within two hundred years. The deep soil of the upland was covered with large trees, principally oak. Wigwam and Purgatory swamps were dismal places. They were covered with a thick growth of cedars and hemlock. These, with much underwood, rendered these places almost im- penetrable. Wigwam Swamp became the resort of wild beasts. It being near the village, the wolf howl was heard from it. To break up that den, it was made a condition of every grant of land, that the grantee should clear away the wood standing on a certain quantity of land in the swamp."
WATERCOURSES
The Charles River-"The Winding Charles"-is the principal stream of Nor- folk County. It crosses the western boundary near the northwest corner of the Town of Bellingham, and from that point follows a general northeasterly course until it empties its waters into Massachusetts Bay at Boston. From the northeast corner of Bellingham to the Middlesex County line it separates the towns of Medway and Millis from Franklin, Norfolk and Medfield; then for some dis- tance it marks the dividing line between Norfolk and Middlesex counties ; then, turning eastward, it divides the towns of Wellesley and Needham from Dover and Dedham. Near Dedham it makes an abrupt bend toward the northwest and forms part of the county boundary.
The Indians called this stream Quin-o-be-quin, which in the Massachusetts tongue means "Winding Water." The manner in which it received the name of "Charles River" is thus told in "A Short History of the First Settlement of Dedhamn." published in 1818, the authorship of which has been attributed to Rev. William Montague, rector of the Episcopal Church: "Eleven ships left England and brought into this then howling wilderness 2,200 emigrants, many of whom were of the best families, and even some from the minor branches of the nobility, with their governor and lieutenant-governor, and landed in May, 1630, on a peninsula, opposite which was another, a river emptying into the head of the Massachusetts Bay running between them; which in honor of Charles I they called Charles River, and the peninsula on which they landed Charlestown."
Next in importance is the Neponset River, which is formed by the junction of several small streams in the southern part of the county. Like the Charles,
3
HISTORY OF NORFOLK COUNTY
its general course is northeast. It forms the boundary between Canton and Milton on the east and Norwood, Westwood and Dedham on the west. In its lower reaches it marks the dividing line between Norfolk and Suffolk counties. Through East Brook and an artificial channel called "Mother Brook," part of the waters of the Charles River are drained into the Neponset. A history of Mother Brook is given in the chapter on Internal Improvements.
Weymouth Fore River is formed in the Town of Braintree by the junction of the Monatiquot and Cochato rivers. It flows in a northeasterly direction, separating the towns of Quincy and Weymouth, and empties into Massachusetts Bay.
Weymouth Back River drains some of the ponds in the Town of Weymouth. It forms part of the boundary line between the towns of Weymouth and Hingham and falls into the Massachusetts Bay a short distance east of the Weymouth Fore River. Its principal tributary is the Old Swamp River.
In the southern part of the county there are a number of small streams that flow in a southerly direction, their waters finally reaching the Narragansett Bay. The most important of these watercourses are the Salisbury, Billings and Fur- nace brooks and the Peters River. In the southwestern part of the Town of Randolph is the summit of the watershed between the Massachusetts and Narra- gansett bays, on an elevation about one hundred and thirty-five feet above high water mark at Weymouth Landing.
Tributary to the Charles River are a number of streams, Mill River, Stop River, Boggastow, Mine, Noanets and Shepard's brooks being the most im- portant. Every part of the county is well watered and along many of the creeks and rivers are beautiful springs of clear, cold water.
GEOLOGY
Although America is called the New World, geologists believe that it is really older than most parts of Europe. Dana divides geologic time into four great ages-the Azoic, Paleozoic, Mesozoic and Cenozoic. These are subdivided into nine periods, and these into a number of eras. The oldest known rocks are the Huronian, so-called by Sir William Logan, because first noticed by him in the vicinity of Lake Huron, though the Huronian limestone, the best example of the formation, is the least abundant of the bed rocks of New England. At the beginning of the Cambrian period, the oldest of the Paleozoic age, mountain masses of granite extended across Massachusetts from northeast to southwest. As granite is generally conceded to be one of the oldest of the igneous rocks, i. e., rocks whose constituent parts have been crystallized from a highly heated condition, Massachusetts was no doubt "dry land" at a time when many parts of the Old World were still under water. Neither the Huronian rocks nor granite contain fossils, indicating that they formed part of the earth's surface before there was.any organic life on this planet.
Granite is an unstratified rock composed of quartz, feldspar and mica. In the Norfolk County granite the feldspar is of the orthoclase variety, a silicate of aluminum and potassium, commonly called "potash feldspar." Granite varies from coarse crystalline masses, in which the crystals are sometimes an inch or more in length, to a fine granular rock called "felsite." It is one of the most
4
HISTORY OF NORFOLK COUNTY
abundant and widespread of the igneous rocks. In the United States it is quarried chiefly in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Delaware and Georgia. In 1913, the last year for which reliable figures are available, the State of Massachusetts produced granite valued at $4,096,372. There is also a variety of granite called "syenite," in which the mica is replaced by hornblende. It is so named from Syene (now Assuan) on the River Nile in Egypt, where it was first discovered.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.