USA > Massachusetts > Hampshire County > Amherst > Amherst past and present : being an historical sketch of the founding and development of the town of Amherst, Massachusetts and its institutions, together with a guide to the principal points of interest > Part 3
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 (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4
THE HISTORICAL HOUSE
Home of the Amherst Historical Society and of Mary Mattoon
Chapter of the D. A. R.
The Amherst Historical Society may well call the Strong House "home", for within its ancient walls the organization was born, a child of the Mary Mattoon Chapter of the D. A. R.
On June 5, 1899, the Chapter gathered to dedicate its new headquarters in the law offices of Judge Simeon Strong, with two notable guests present: Mrs. Sarah Emerson, ninety-eight years of age, the owner of the house, and Julia Ward Howe. At this meeting Mrs. Mabel Loomis Todd, founder and regent of the Chapter, proposed the formation of the Amherst Historical Society. As a result of her later efforts the society was organized in 1903: "To carry on patriotic work and historic research, to preserve relics, collect books and manuscripts, and to keep before the rising generation the achievements of the fathers of the town." This aim the society has faithfully followed.
At the death of Mrs. Felicia Welch, last member of the Emerson family, the Historical Society inherited the property together with $3,000 on the condition that the house should never be altered or the land used for other buildings. The will also stipulated that Mrs. Emerson's room should forever remain as used by her.
The Mary Mattoon Chapter of the D. A. R., organized in 1896, has done much to promote patriotic sentiment and to preserve local antiquites. The Chapter Rooms are eloquent of the times in which Mary Mattoon, wife of Gen. Ebenezer Mat- toon, lived. Her noble face, calmly gazing from the portrait on the wall, truthfully reflects the character of the woman who „admirably managed her home and held the affections of a dis-
31
tinguished husband for fifty-six years. Their house at East Street was the most elegant in the town, their servants the most numerous. There the Mattoons constantly entertained visitors . of note with a dignified hospitality.
In the Chapter Rooms are many valuable mementoes that include portraits of Ebenezer and Mary Mattoon, with articles . once belonging to them of personal use, as well as furniture, silver, and china. There is also a cane used by Noah Dickinson, the father of Mary Mattoon. The wood trim of the fireplace in the Chapter Rooms shows bullet holes that speak of war. All the woodwork about the open chimney that stands in the center of the room came from the house in Elizabeth, N. J., which Gen- eral Washington once used as headquarters during a campaign of the Revolutionary War.
The Historical Society treasurers its delightful old house. When built in 1744 it was probably somewhat smaller than at present, certainly without the law offices on the west side and
THE OLD STRONG HOUSE
32
the dormers in the roof. The height of the sycamores at the entrance proves their age and the depth of the front lawn indicates the former width of the old highway to Hadley, which was 660 feet. This highway was the first in Amherst to receive a particular name, Amity Street.
Within, the house breathes of antiquity. In every room, . above and below, are heavy oaken beams which divide the ceil- ings and strengthen the massive frame. Elaborate paneling stretches parallel with the steep narrow stairs that rise with two turns from first to second floor. The parlor at the left of the front entrance displays fine wainscoting, unexpected cupboards in the thickness of the walls, and a high cupboard at the end of the mantelpiece where flint and tinder were kept for lighting the fire. There is also a secret closet. Opening from the parlor is the dining-room with an enormous fireplace.
To the right of the front door is the library, an integral feature of which is an ancient corner cupboard. The paneling in the lower half, below the glass doors, is in the form of a Greek cross, a design supposed to be efficacious in keeping away the witches. In this room are old books of interest kept behind the glass of mahogany secretaries, one of which has very beautiful - carvings and brass work. For a timepiece there is a wag-on-wall clock. On the second floor, at the head of the stairs, is Mrs. Emerson's room, with gates at the doorways.
The society possesses many historical relics of local interest. Among them is the sign, dated 1758, of John Nash's Tavern which stood on Pleasant Street near the present Boston and Maine railroad station; and the great lion signboard of the Bolt- wood Tavern. A very old wooden cradle in which probably was rocked the baby who became President Hitchcock, stands neigh- bor to another which lulled to sleep little W. A. Stearns who was also to become president of Amherst College. Near by is the wicker cradle of Helen Hunt Jackson, born Helen Fiske. A characteristic memento is the uncompromising chair of Jonathan Edwards.
Both the library and the collection of historical relics are "open to inspection by the public.
And what of the family whose personality is stamped on the
33
old house? Nehemiah, builder of this mansion in the wilder- ness of Hadley Third Precinct, was grandson of "Elder" John Strong of Plymouth, England, who came to Northampton in 1659 by way of Dorchester and Windsor, Conn. Elder Strong, dying at the age of ninety-four, left 162 descendants! Nehemiah had three children-Nehemiah, Mary, and Simeon. Mary married Lieut. Solomon Boltwood and made her home nearby on Amity Street in the old house built in 1750, which is still standing. Simeon, a lawyer and eventually a judge, inherited the old home while his father still lived. It was Simeon who added the law offices which during the Revolutionary War be- came headquarters for the group that remained loyal to the king. In spite of his Toryism he retained the respect of his fellow townsmen, kept his position at the Bar, and acquired wealth. He trained four sons to be successful lawyers, the second of whom, Hezekiah Wright Strong, started the subscrip- tion that founded Amherst Academy.
After sheltering generations of Strongs, the house passed into other hands. At one time it was a boarding house popular with the Amherst College students, and a Freshman named Henry Ward Beecher made it his home in 1830-31. In 1853 it returned once more to the family when it was bought by Mrs. Sarah Emerson, sister-in-law of Simeon Strong, 2nd, son of the judge. A daughter, Miss Laura Emerson, gave instruction on the old piano still in the house. One of her pupils was a lively nine-year-old who wrote his first poem through his con- nection with her. The theme was his dog and the writer Eugene Field. Eugene Field dedicated many of his poems to his cousin Miss Mary Field who had cared for him in the home of her mother Mrs. Jones. Miss Field spent the latter part of her life in the Strong House.
HISTORIC HOUSES
The Strong House (1744) next to the Jones Library on Amity Street has already been described under the topic: "The Historical House". This is the oldest building in Amherst.
The Boltwood House (1750) is No. 45 Amity Street. This ancient dwelling, erected by Lieut. Solomon Boltwood, was after 1787 the home of Dr. Robert Cutler who left Pelham for Amherst because he was not in sympathy with the Shays Rebellion. He and his son Isaac practiced medicine in Amherst for many years and both were prominent in town affairs. The house originally stood just west of where Amity Street is now intersected by Lincoln Avenue. Mason A. Dickinson, Jr., is the present owner of the property.
The Noah Dickinson House, No. 137 Main Street, near East Street Common, may have been built as early as 1754. It was the home of Mary Dickinson who married Ebenezer Mattoon. Standing in the doorway, Lieut. Noah Dickinson threatened with his gun the looting soldiery of Shays Rebellion. This house is unoccupied.
The Kellogg House (1758) is on North East Street, a short distance from Main. Here Rufus Kellogg kept the Amherst Post Office 1809-20. This fine old dwelling is the property of Miss Margaret Hamlin.
The Homestead, which stands near the girls' dormitory on the M. A. C. Campus, was built about 1762 by Oliver Cowles. A hundred years later the farm was purchased by the College, and the old farmhouse has recently been restored and fitted up as a practice house for the Home Economics Department.
The Dickinson-Baggs Tavern, built as a dwelling about 1770, occupies the southeast corner of Main Street and East Street
35
Common. This inn was well known in the days of the stage- coach. It has been restored and furnished as a museum of Colonial relics by Mrs. May Bliss Dickinson Kimball, a direct descendent of Noah Dickinson, and is open to the public. The entrance fee is for the benefit of the Mothercraft work of the Massachusetts Federation of Women's Clubs.
The Mattoon House, on the east side of East Street Com- mon, bears a marker. This mansion of the famous Gen. Ebenezer Mattoon, built about 1780, consisted of a central portion which is the present dwelling, and north and south wings long since removed. The house is now the home of Robert Adair.
The Birthplace and Home of the poet Emily Dickinson, at No. 50 Main Street, bears an appropriate tablet. This was the first
--
---
----
EMILY DICKINSON'S BIRTHPLACE AND HOME
36
brick house in town when built by her grandfather, Samuel Fowler Dickinson, before 1800. It is occupied in summer by the owner, Rev. Hervey L. Parke of Pasadena, Calif.
At 83 South Pleasant Street is the Helen Hunt Jackson House, marked by a tablet. Here lived, until she was fifteen, Helen Maria Fiske who, as the author "H.H.", was to become famous for her novel "Ramona" She was born in 1831 in the old Tyler house on Tyler Place, the daughter of Nathan Welby Fiske, Professor at Amherst College. This house belongs to the college.
The Home of President Edward Hitchcock, with Octagon, is No. 91 South Pleasant Street. The house was built more than a century ago, but President Hitchcock erected the Octagon (then a separate structure) in 1836 to accommodate his collection of minerals. The place, owned for many years by Morris W. King- man, is now college property.
The Jones House at 39 Amity Street, built in 1838 by Thomas Jones of Enfield, was for a generation the center of the business and social life of Amherst. In it grew to manhood the son, Samuel Minot Jones, future donor of the Jones Library. Under the care of their aunt, Mrs. Jones, the motherless Field boys, Roswell and Eugene, spent twelve happy years. In this house Grace Episcopal Church was organized. Later, Hiram Heaton bought the place and here his daughter, Mary Heaton Vorse, began her writing of novels and short stories. Here too lived Ray Stannard Baker (David Grayson) while building his home on Sunset Avenue. The property is now the home of Hon. Cady R. Elder.
THE JONES LIBRARY
THE JONES LIBRARY
On Nov. 1, 1928, the people of Amherst entered the doors of their new Free Library, a book home unique among buildings of its kind and recognized as one of the most noteworthy small -- town libraries in the United States. The bequest that resulted. in the library came through the generosity of a former townsman,. Samuel Minot Jones.
Mr. Jones was born in Enfield, Mass., Sept. 16, 1836. His, childhood and youth, however, were spent in Amherst, which he did not leave for the Middle West until 1854. Though. Chicago was the field of his business success, he never forgot his. boyhood home.
The bequest of about $700,000 was one of the largest bene -- factions of its kind ever made to a town in the United States .. At present the assets of the institution approximate $1,000,000, the land and equipment being valued at about $400,000. The library was incorporated March 21, 1919; opened its doors in. the old Amherst House Sept. 7, 1921; suffered in the fire that.
38
·destroyed the building Dec. 9, 1926; took possession of its new building Nov. 1, 1928.
The Jones Library is the fulfilment of the desire of the com- munity for an adequate public library. Amherst has always been a town of readers. As early as June 4, 1793, the first cir- culating library was formed with an initial fee of $2 and dues of eighteen cents. Books could be exchanged as often as six times . a year! After the founding of Amherst Academy (1814) and its offshoot, Amherst College, their libraries served the townspeople with theological and scientific books. During the passage of the century, libraries in different parts of the town were born but to «die, with the exception of the North Amherst Library (1869) and the Amherst Library Association (1873). These two or- ganizations are now united with the Jones Library.
The new building of the Jones Library occupies a site of. nearly two acres next to the Historical House on Amity Street. It is constructed of field stone, the rambling contour, white trim, and green blinds suggesting less a conventional library than a New England home that has grown to meet its needs. The architect, Mr. Allen H. Cox of the firm of Putnam & Cox, has styled the building "Connecticut Valley domestic."
The library contains twelve large rooms and sixteen of smaller size. The central portion has a two-story addition at either end: the one to the west is the Children's Wing and that .on the east the Auditorium. Entering the main door of the library, which is Colonial with a characteristic pineapple design in the pediment, one stands in a hall with the reading-room to the left. Here are armchairs, divans, and a fireplace-one of eleven that add. cheer to the library. The book shelves near at hand can accommodate 2,000 volumes and the stacks beyond 6,000 to 8,000 more.
Connected with this room on the west is the Children's Wing, which has also a separate entrance. This is in reality a two-story house with the reading-room for boys and girls on the main floor. Of the two large rooms upstairs, one is suited for story-telling and the other for exhibitions of stamp collections, Boy Scout handi- ·craft, art material, and books.
On the main floor to the right of the hall is the Lucius M.
39
Boltwood Historical and Genealogical Collection. The Audi- torium in the east wing seats 350 people and has a fully-equipped stage on two levels; the lower is a speaker's platform, the higher an ample space for plays and concerts.
The second floor of the central section of the library has three large rooms. In one of these the bronzes and paintings" donated by the Burnett family of Amherst are displayed, though single statues and paintings adorn other parts of the building as well. The second room is the Samuel Minot Jones Memorial Room, which contains his personal library of standard works. On this floor is also housed the Amherst Collection consisting of books by local authors, among whom are Noah Webster, Helen Hunt Jackson, Emily Dickinson, Eugene and Roswell Field, Ray Stannard Baker (David Grayson), Walter A. Dyer, Martha Gilbert Dickinson Bianchi, and others; also Amherst imprints together with historical matter pertaining to the town.
The major part of the books and all research material is in the main building, but a good collection is maintained at the North Amherst Library and at the Munson Memorial Library in South Amherst. Volumes for reference are always on hand at the Senior and Junior High Schools and small collections are loaned to the schools at South Amherst, Pelham, and Cushman.
During the winter, 5 o'clock on Sunday sees an audience filling the auditorium to listen to a talk or a concert given some- times by local talent, sometimes by friends from the vicinity. The University Extension classes held during the winter months- are a valuable feature of the work of the Jones Library.
THE MUNSON MEMORIAL LIBRARY
The Munson Memorial Library came to the town through the generosity of Mrs. Mary Munson of South Amherst, who left $35,000 in her will for that purpose. The provisions of the gift were accepted March 1, 1915. After the town received the be- quest of Samuel Minot Jones also for a public library, it was deemed best to locate the Munson Memorial at South Amherst. The Munson fund amounted to about $43,000 in 1930 at the time of the erection of the building.
The library stands neighbor to the South Congregational Church and faces the Common. This homelike combination of white-painted wood and brick, Colonial in type and seemingly a part of its environment, was designed by the architect Karl S. Putnam of Northampton. A wooden wing extending toward the street joins the main structure of brick at right angles and thus provides space for a front garden enclosed by a high brick wall. Through the garden lies the picturesque approach to the front door. As one steps into the corridor, the long book room is at the left. This delightful place, though all one apartment, is partially divided by a chimney with fireplaces into two reading- rooms, one for adults and the other for the children. The vol- umes on the shelves are furnished by the Jones Library and are ·changed at intervals.
The main division of the building houses an auditorium seating 200, which has an ample stage and a separate entrance on the south. This hall, together with other facilities, serves to make Munson Memorial a community center as well as a library.
THE LORD JEFFERY INN
A quaint yet most comfortable hotel with one foot in the village street and one on college land-such is the Lord Jeffery Inn, built by a corporation of Amherst College alumni and towns- people in 1926. The location facing the Common is appropriate for a charming structure that is apparently an aggregation of white-painted brick buildings of different periods. An ancient apple tree by the front piazza contributes to the illusion of age. On the southern exposure, more gnarled, time-twisted trees shade an old-fashioned garden.
Entering the inn, the visitor beholds the long-ago in its most gracious aspect. Beamed ceilings of natural wood, an enormous fireplace with a window, and antique furnishings all help to pro- duce an atmosphere of the past. The factor that is most con- tributory to this atmosphere, and perhaps most interesting, is the adornment of the walls. In the lobby, living-room, writing- rooms, and halls hang portraits and mementoes of the French and Indian Wars in which Lord (then General) Jeffery Amherst gained his prestige. These memorabilia are a part of the George A. Plimpton Collection, the assembling of which took twenty years. The entire collection has been given to Amherst College by Mr. Plimpton, who is the president of the Board of Trustees, and eventually the whole of it will be on display at the Inn.
The collection is probably the most complete and representa- tive assemblage extant of matter pertaining to the British occu- pation of Canada. It naturally divides itself into three classes : 1. Maps of the period, mostly strategic localities; the region of the St. Lawrence River and the New England coast. These old maps are the delight of geographical experts. 2. Imaginary historical scenes and portraits. The likenesses of leaders of the time, including Lord Chatham (William Pitt I), the Earl of Boscawen, General Wolfe, General Amherst, and George Wash- ington hang in the lobby and living-room. 3. Mementoes of human interest, which are the most important part of the collec- tion. Here are original letters from Lord Amherst and others, one of which was written by General Moncton announcing the
42
victory of Quebec, the death of Wolfe, and his own serious condi- tion. Copies of the Proclamation of War (1756) between Eng- land and France bear the names of English, French, and American printers. Here are muster rolls of soldiers in the war, some of local interest, as for example the company from Westfield. These rolls or dining lists were itemized accounts rendered to the government by landlords for feeding soldiers. Near the living- room door is a remarkable broadside beginning: "George II still reigns. Amherst goes on conquering." An especially inter- esting memento is the photograph of a worn lead plate in which is cast a French inscription. This plate, dated 1749, was one of the markers that indicated the limit of French territorial claims in the Mississippi Valley.
THE LORD JEFFERY INN
The Inn takes its name from the victorious general, Jeffery Amherst. His capture of Louisburg in 1758 laid the French possessions open to British attack. The siege of Quebec under General Wolfe, though it was a great victory, did not end the war; it remained for General Amherst to follow up the advantage, take Montreal, and gain half a continent for England.
Because of his brilliant successes in the French and Indian War, General Amherst became a popular hero both in England
43
and America. After his return home he was made Commander- in-Chief of all the British forces and received honors and emolu- ments for the rest of his days. In 1776 he was created Baron Amherst of Holmesdale, Kent, and in 1787 Lord Amherst of Montreal, his country seat in Kent. At his death in 1797 with- out issue, his title and estates passed to his nephew William Pitt Amherst from whom the present family is descended.
At the Centenary of Amherst College in 1921, the present Lord Amherst, then the youthful Viscount Holmesdale, repre- sented his father. Since that time Lord Amherst has made several visits to the college.
Amherst College, though named for the town, reveres Lord Jeffery as its patron saint. His romantic personality is the theme of the song "Lord Jeffery Amherst," written by James S. Hamilton of the class of 1906, considered one of the best college songs ever composed by an undergraduate.
CHURCHES
The first church in Amherst, then Hadley Third Precinct, was organized in 1739 with Rev. David Parsons as minister. The original meeting-house, which was in use before 1742, stood on the present site of the College Octagon. Outwardly it was severely plain; within, there were a few pews for persons of social prominence, but the greater part of the congregation sat on uncomfortable benches around the walls, the men on one side the women on the other.
In 1787 there was erected on the same location a second and more elaborate building which was afterwards beautified by the addition of a belfry and a bell. This bell superseded the "kunk" (conch shell) which hitherto had summoned the people to religious services or to Town Meetings, which were always held in the meeting-house. For many years the bell was rung at noon and at nine in the evening. It was also used as a fire alarm.
44
The third building of the First Parish became a necessity when the students of Amherst College increased the congregation. At the time of its erection (1829) this noble structure presented, as now, a facade with columns and a belfry that crowned propor- tions ample to accommodate both parish and students. Within, on the west wall, a high, bare pulpit faced square pews with doors, while around three sides extended galleries at the rear of which sat the few negro slaves. The year 1832 saw a concession to the weaklings-the introduction of heat. Supported on wires, long pipes from stoves at the back conveyed a feeble warmth the length of the building. There was, moreover, a "singing choir" led by the booming bass viol. This choir was considered an extravagance, for its maintenance cost annually $125. After the First Parish took possession of its new stone edifice on Main Street in 1867, the college purchased the third building and named it College Hall.
The Second Congregational Society resulted from a contro- versy in the First Church. On Nov. 12, 1782, the "Aggrieved" convened at the house of Ebenezer Mattoon in East Street and organized themselves into a separate church. The first building was located in 1783 on East Street Common. Some of its sturdy timbers are incorporated in the present structure on Main Street which was built in 1839.
A Congregational Society was organized in the south part of the town in 1824 and in North Amherst in 1826. The meeting- house at the latter place was built and owned by one man, Oliver Dickinson, to keep belief and preaching true to the doctrines set forth in the Westminster Catechism. He sold the pews under strict regulations and gave a deed of the pulpit to the first minister conditioned on his continued orthodoxy. In 1831 Oliver Dickin- son presented the meeting-house to the congregation with the same restrictions of orthodoxy, and added another condition that anchored the building forever to the spot he had selected. Oliver Dickinson's meeting-house is the present North Congrega- tional Church.
For ninety-three years the only denomination in Amherst was the Congregational. In 1832 the Baptists came, a branch of the society in New Salem. In the belfry of the Baptist Church on South Pleasant Street, erected in 1855, hangs a Paul Revere
45
bell. The story is that it was once the property of the First Congregational Society. Other denominations followed the Baptists: St. Brigid's Roman Catholic, which now occupies a beautiful Italian Renaissance edifice on Pleasant Street; Grace Episcopal at the corner of Spring Street, which at first worshiped in the hall of the old Amherst Academy; Wesley Methodist Episcopal on Main Street; Unity on Pleasant Street. Hope Congregational Church on Gaylord Street and the A. M. E. Zion Church on Woodside Avenue are the daughters of Zion Chapel established some fifty years ago by President Julius H. Seelye and students of Amherst College for the colored people of the town.
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.