USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Westminster > Celebration of the one hundredth anniversary of the incorporation of Westminster, Mass. > Part 9
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But the fresh breeze from the North-west, which was invigora- ting in the early morning, soon stiffened into a gale, and blew with such a constant and uninterrupted current through the day, as to destroy the sport of the firemen, and greatly impair all the antici- pated pleasures of the occasion. So powerful was the gale as to endanger the Tent upon the Common ; and " mine host " felt the necessity of adopting the requirement of the Prophet : " Spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes,"-and even then, though he kept his tent standing, it did not escape all injury. The flags, which at an early hour were playing so gracefully in the breeze, were soon increasing in number by diminishing in size, and were hauled down to save them from utter destruction. And while, with full hearts and eager interest, thousands of persons were ex- changing their cordial greetings and friendly salutations, clouds of dust were blinding their eyes, and teaching them the all-important truth, that we are subject to Him "who maketh the clouds his chariot, and who walketh upon the wings of the wind."
But notwithstanding the unpropitious character of the day, the programme was carried out as far as practicable. The booming of a hundred guns in the morning, had announced a festive day, and the gladsome peals, reverberating from hill to hill, had sent forth a cordial welcome to numerous natives of the place, returned to visit the home of their childhood, and the Hill where their parents worshiped,-and they must not be disappointed.
At ten o'clock the Procession was formed, at the Town Hall, under the direction of the Chief Marshal, John Minott, assisted
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by his Deputies, and by Levi Heywood, Esq., of Gardner, who marshaled the Delegation from his town. The Procession moved in the following Order :
1 The Engine Companies, accompanied by their Bands, as an Escort.
2 The Committee of Arrangements. 3 The President of the Day, Orator, and Chaplain. 4 The Vice Presidents. 5
The Rev. Clergy, Invited Guests, and Representatives of the Press.
6 The Westminster Choir. 7 Citizens of Gardner. 8 Citizens at Large.
Forming one peculiar feature of the Procession, were the Rep- resentatives of a former generation, among whom was the venera- ble Deacon DAVID WHITNEY, in the NINETY-THIRD year of his age. The Procession moved to the Common, where a Speakers' Stand had been erected, and seats furnished for the accommodation of the company, who had assembled to the number of about twenty- five hundred. Here, among the relics of antiquity exhibited by Deacon Whitney, was an Arm Chair, the property of his mother, manufactured in England, two hundred years ago, and brought by her to Westminster, one hundred and six years ago .*
The exercises at the Stand, commenced with Music from the Band, followed by a Voluntary by the Choir ; Reading of the
* His mother was Tabitha Merriam, from Lexington, daughter of Thomas and Tabitha (Stone) Merriam. As the original ancestors of the Merriams and the Stones, came to this country between 1630 and 1640, it is probable that this venerable relic was a portion of the furniture brought by the first emigrant in one of those families.
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Scriptures by Rev. Brown Emerson, of Westminster ; and Prayer by Rev. Marcus Ames, of Chelsea, Mass., who formerly officiated in Westminster.
The following original Hymn, composed by Miss Lucy B. Whitney, of Westminster, was then sung.
All hail the day we celebrate ! Let all the people throng, And every voice with one accord, Pour forth a grateful song.
And while in the loud swelling strain, Are joining old and young, Let every note our lips shall breathe, To thee, O God, be sung.
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Here are the people thy right hand Hath scattered o'er our hills ; Pour out, O Lord, on all our hearts, The grace thy love instills.
So shall the gala-day we spend, Find favor in thy sight, And crown a century's hoary head- A coronet of light.
We trace, to-day, the hundred years Our native town hath seen ; A hundred times thy power, O God, Hath robed her hills in green.
And all the blessings that have dropped Upon her sons like dew, Have shown, through all the circling years, Thy boundless love anew.
And now unto our native soil. Her scattered sons repair ; Make all their hearts, O Lord of hosts,' Free as her mountain air.
For a hundred years thy mighty arm Hath made our town increase ; Upon the century yet to come, Send forth, O Lord, thy peace.
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After these preliminary exercises, which were inaudible to nineteen-twentieths of the Assembly, in consequence of the violence of the wind, Hon. Charles Hudson, of Lexington, was introduced as the Orator of the Day. Mr. Hudson attempted to deliver his Address, under circumstances peculiarly adverse. The rude blasts of old Boreas, whistling through the pendent branches of the aged elms over his head, rendered it impossible for any man to be heard by any considerable number of the people present. A contest with such a rival proving unavailing, a compromise was finally effected, by an adjournment to the Orthodox Church. The house was immediately filled to overflowing, and only a small portion of the people could gain admission. The Universalists' Church, on the opposite side of the Street, was immediately thrown open ; and the Address of Mr. Hudson was resumed in the former, while the Poem of Mr. Haywood was commenced in the latter. But even then, a considerable portion of the people could not be accommo- dated with seats, or even get within the sound of the speakers' voices.
The time which had been consumed in marching to and from the Hill to the churches, left in fact but little time for speaking; so that only a small portion of what had been prepared, could be delivered. Rather than be late at the table, the exercises at the church were cut short, and the following Original Hymn, by Hon. George Lunt, of Boston, was sung :
Let grateful songs ascend on high, For now the day of days has come, When swelling heart and moistened eye Bid every wanderer welcome home.
Each field and hill and grassy slope Recalls-what buried joys and tears!
While Memory crowns, in hand with Hope, This harvest of a hundred years.
These are the paths our Fathers trod, . Our Sons the faithful thought shall keep, And bless, like us, the sacred sod, Where fathers and where mothers sleep.
Thus on this spot till ages end, While souls their pious thoughts renew,
The past shall with the present blend, To make the future bright and truc.
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After the Benediction was pronounced, the procession was re- formed and moved to the Common, where a Dinner had been provided by Captain Charles Fletcher, of Leominster. Ample justice having been done to this repast, by some twelve hundred persons, the President of the Day, Mr. Benjamin Wyman, rose and made the following Address :
Ladies and Gentlemen :-
I am called, this day, to preside and take the responsibilities of this position, by the Committee of Arrangements. I do not con- ceive that the honor was conferred upon me for any tact or ability which I possess above my associates ; but, for the single reason, that I am one of the few who were born in this town, and have always resided here, and have been an eye-witness of the events which have transpired for the last half century.
In behalf of the Committee of Arrangements, I welcome you, one and all, to the pleasures and festivities of this day. Particu- larly do I welcome those whose fortunes are cast elsewhere, who have returned to visit the place of their birth and the scenes of their childhood. I welcome you to our somewhat wild and romantic scenery, which may have, in some degree, given cast to your characters ; to our fresh and bracing atmosphere, which could hardly fail to impart strength and vigor to your frames. I welcome you to the scene of your fathers' toils-to the place where parental fondness reared you, and where many a prayer has been offered for your prosperity and happiness.
I also welcome those of our friends, who are here to-day as invited guests ; and though we have nothing peculiarly attractive or striking in our history, to engage your attention, and gain your admiration, we trust that we can point you to a stern and pious ancestry, who contributed their full share to build up the institu- tions, whose blessings are shared by the present generation.
In October, 1759, Westminster was incorporated into a District, that the people might better regulate their municipal affairs. She was then a constituent part of Massachusetts Colony, subject to the government of Great Britain. In less than twenty years, our Inde- pendence was declared, which eventually separated the Colony from the mother country. This is history.
The first settlers in this town were of the old English Puritan stock, bred to the rights of private judgment, and, inheriting the
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great principles of English liberty and independence, were ready at all times to assert their rights, and maintain them too, whoever might be the aggressor. Being an intelligent and religious people, they were ever ready to perform their part in laying broad and deep the foundations of a free Commonwealth. Their love of liberty, and their readiness to peril all in its defence, grew out of their devotion to their God, and a firm trust in his providence. Believing in the " higher law," and the ability of the divine Law- giver to do his will among the nations of the earth, they performed what, after full and deliberate reflection, they conceived to be their duty, and left the result with him. Nor did they labor and suffer for themselves alone. Their love of liberty included the welfare of those who came after them. The sacrifices they made in our Revolution, were for the two-fold object of securing the blessings of liberty to themselves, and leaving the rich inheritance to their posterity. Such was the character, and such the motives of our Fathers ; and we are here to-day to hallow their memories, and venerate their names. The fathers and mothers of the Revolution are gone from us ; but their deeds and their characters "still live." And we can best express our gratitude by trusting in Him on whom they relied, by emulating their deeds, and handing down their names to succeeding generations.
What thoughts and recollections crowd upon us to-day! The past has gone, and the present will be history a hundred years hence. The place we shall occupy in its pages, depends upon ourselves. I well remember, in my boyhood, of listening to a citizen of this town, while he related an experience of his youth. He said, " at the breaking out of the Revolution, a messenger arrived in town before noon, on the 19th of April, to notify the people that the British troops were on their way to Concord. Runners were sent in every direction, to rally the citizens. My father and I were at work in the field, when the news reached us. We went to the house and took our dinner ; he gave directions to my mother, and immediately started off with others for Concord." What was true of this man, was true of more than forty other citizens of Westminster, on that eventful day. Well may we exclaim, Patriotic and noble ancestors ! We will strive to emulate your virtues.
Citizens of Gardner, who are here to celebrate this day with us, we bid you, welcome. Some of your territory was included in
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ours at the time of our incorporation. You have gone out from us; you have outgrown us ; but we envy not your prosperity. You are bone of our bone, and flesh of our flesh, and when one member rejoices, all shall rejoice with it. Go on and prosper, and our benediction shall attend you.
We have many, we rejoice to know, with us to-day, who will speak to us on this joyous occasion.
Mr. Wyman closed by announcing Messrs. Frederick Allen and Daniel C. Miles, as Toast-masters ; and said that he trusted responses would be made by gentlemen, as they were called upon.
The gale which had been so annoying during the morning, con- tinued with unabated violence through the whole afternoon, render- ing the speech of the President, and the responses to the senti- ments, inaudible, except to the few who were near the speakers. This fact will account for the meager report of the speeches.
The following regular sentiments were announced by the Toast- masters :
1. The Day we celebrate.
This sentiment was responded to, by Rev. S. S. Smith, of War- ren, Mass., formerly a settled clergyman in Westminster. He said : " I know not why I should be called upon thus early, to open the intellectual treat on this occasion. For I find myself somewhat in the situation of a verdant young lad who, during my ministry in this place, attended yonder Academy. One evening, on going to the door to answer the bell, I found myself confronted by a brother Jonathan, who said, ' Mr. Smith, I attend the Academy, and the Preceptor says I must write a composition ; and I called to see if you would not assist me.' ' I cannot write a composition for you,' was my reply. ' I did not expect that you would write it for me,' said he, ' but I kinder wanted you should give me some words, and I will kinder put them together, and so make some idees if I can.' I told him if that was all he wanted, I could help him ; I could give him a dictionary, which was full of words.
" My situation is not exactly like his. I have generally words enough ; but I shall find it ' kinder' hard to put them together, so as to make ideas. But I suppose I must say something, to open this entertainment. I rejoice in this day. I rejoice that I am per-
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mitted to see so many familiar and pleasant faces before me, all apparently rejoicing in this occasion. I think this day will do us all good ; as it will join our souls together, and induce us to do more for the benefit of the community. There is not a man or woman here to-day, but that will go home with a fuller appreciation of the blessings we enjoy. All will be wiser and better for being here. Though I am not a native of the place, I feel connected with you by the ties of an intercourse extended through the several years of my residence in your midst. I have many attach- ments to the good old town, and rejoice that I am neither forgotten nor repudiated by you." He closed his remarks with expressing his good wishes for the peace, prosperity, and future enjoyment of the people of the place.
2. The Town of Westminster-as it was one hundred years ago, and as it now is.
As a response to this sentiment, the following letter from the honorable and venerable Abijah Bigelow, of Worcester, was read :
Worcester, Sept. 27, 1859.
WILLIAM S. BRADBURY, Esq. :
Dear Sir,-I received your polite invitation, in behalf of the Committee for the Celebration of the Centennial Anniversary of the Incorporation of the Town of Westminster, of which I am a native, being born there on the fifth of December, 1775. It would give me great pleasure, and much satisfaction, to be present on so interesting an occasion, were I able ; but my age and infirm- ities will prevent my attendance. You ask me to give my recol- lections of its early history. Great changes have taken place since I was a boy. My father lived about a mile westerly of the Meet- ing-house Hill, where Rev. Asaph Rice resided. There was then no other road from Westminster to Gardner, but that which went by my father's house, which was situated where my kinsman, Benson Bigelow, now resides. He then kept a public house, for the accommodation of travelers who passed on the road, but not as a resort for towns-people to drink and carouse. From the time I was seven to ten years old, I shall never, while my recollections last, forget those winters. It was at a time when the principal citizens of the towns lying beyond Greenfield, went in sleighs to carry their produce to Boston ; and frequently we had, at night, to
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put up from twenty to thirty horses, which was cold work, as I know by experience, for I had to assist. Since then, you have made a Turnpike, which goes back of my father's house. Then the Railroad to Vermont was made, which, although running through Westminster, is yet two or three miles from the centre of the town. The changes in respect to schools have been highly honorable to you as a town. You have an Academy on " Meeting-house Hill," so called, which has been well sustained, and is in a flourishing condition.
I have much to make me respect and love the town of West- minster ; and I sincerely hope that by industry, frugality, and temperance, it may always continue one of the most respectable towns in the county.
Once more, regretting my inability to be with you on the 6th of October, and praying for God's blessing on my native town, I remain,
Yours truly, ABIJAH BIGELOW.
3. The Sons of Westminster, native and adopted .- While our forests have disappeared under the hand of cultivation, it has not reduced the value of our WooD.
It was expected that Hon. Nathaniel Wood, of Fitchburg, a former resident in the town, would have been present to respond to this sentiment ; but being absent, the President said he was happy to say, that Rev. Dr. Allen, formerly a Missionary to Bom- bay, who was for a short time a resident in this place, and who had partaken largely of its blessings, was present with us on this occasion ; and as his better-half was a WOOD, of Westminster growth, he should call upon him .*
Dr. Allen said, he came to this town about forty years ago, as a school-teacher. " I am happy now to recognize many of my former pupils, as the leading and distinguished citizens of the town. While teaching in Westminster, I made many valuable acquaint- . ances and friends, and the recollections of those days are revived on this occasion. I was ordained as a Foreign Missionary in this
* Dr. Allen married, 1827, Miss Myra Wood, daughter of Abel Wood, Esq. She accompanied him to Bombay, where she died, February 5, 1831. .
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town, and but a few rods from this place, in May, 1827, thirty-two years ago. I left the country soon after, and was absent twenty- six years. In leaving this country, I was conscious that I was attended by the prayers and benedictions of many of the good people of Westminster. It was from this town that I took with me what I valued above all earthly blessings; and I am happy to know that the Wood, of this kind, has not deteriorated."
He then related some family reminiscences, and closed with some brief and touching allusions to the companion of his choice, who was willing to give up all for Christ, and who cheerfully left friends and kindred dear, to accompany him on his mission to the heathen, in the hope that she might be instrumental in spreading the glorious Gospel among the benighted children of Asia ; who cooperated with him in his labors in the Bombay Mission, and who found her last resting-place in that distant country, far from her native land.
Mr. Goodwin Wood, of Fitchburg, also responded to this senti- ment. He related some incidents that occurred in his boyhood, and humorously gave an anecdote bearing upon the ludicrous, of a conversation which, to his boyish imagination, had all the vividness of truth, but which, to his riper years, hardly rose to the dignity of fiction. He concluded by giving as a sentiment :
Westminster-which has ever taken a high stand in the cause of temperance, virtue and morality-may she pursue the same course, " only more so," for the com- ing hundred years.
4. Our Lands-Although productive of many of the good things of life, yet not sufficiently so to save us, at this time, from dependence upon the Western MILLER.
Levi Miller, Esq., of Antwerp, N. Y., a native of Westminster, responded to the call thus made upon him. " We are assembled," said he, " for no common purpose, and on no common occasion. We are here to take a view of the past, and should time permit, to take a glance at the future. We are here, not to engage in the business of President-making, or Governor-making-not to discuss political questions-whether Congress has a right to make a certain law, or not ; but we come to shake each other cordially by the
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hand, and to unite our hearts in affectionate remembrance, and our voices in praise of whatever is wise and great. We have come from the shores of the sea, from the rivers of the West, from the sunny climes of the South, and from the granite hills of the North, to unite our voices with yours, in celebrating the One Hundredth Anniversary of your Birth-day."
The speaker then compared Westminster of 1759, with West- minster of 1859, and said, that then the wandering Indian traversed this county, spreading terror and devastation, but now the steam- engine goes snorting his way through valleys and hills, and he was happy to learn that he was about to put his nose through the Hoosac. After running this parallel between the past and the present, and giving several instances of the great changes which a century had wrought, he continued by saying : " With this day we renew our affection for this town. We should bow before our Heavenly Father, and thank him that he has vouchsafed to us this opportunity ; that he has blessed both you and us, and inspired our hearts with filial and fraternal feeling. I would say with the Royal Psalmist : 'Our heads are anointed with oil, and our cup runneth over.' In yonder cemetery rest the bones of my ancestors, who took part in the early settlement of this town ; among whom is an honored mother, who taught me to love God, and to pray to him, and to keep the Sabbath-day holy. These lessons from her pious lips, seem to rise up fresh before me on this occasion, and admonish me not to disregard the instruction of her who, though dead, yet speaketh."
After relating some personal incidents, he closed by suggesting that if the increase of population, and the march of improvement, for the next century, should continue in equal ratio with the past, the people may be able to come from all parts of the country to attend our next Centennial, and return to their home the same evening.
5. Our Fathers were a provident people-but though they estimated their money by PENNIES, their lands were computed by MILES.
It was expected that Rev. Dr. Henry A. Miles, of Boston, whose grandfather resided in Westminster, and was their principal land surveyor, would respond to this sentiment ; but not being present,
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the President said he should do the best he could to procure a sub- stitute, and therefore should call upon Clough R. Miles, Esq., of Millbury, who, though of another family, had the advantage of being a native of Westminster.
Mr. Miles, in answer to the call, gave an account of his lineage, and, recurring to the scenes of his boyhood, said he could almost hear the tread of his feet, as he came to the old school-house on the Meeting-house Hill, fifty years ago, where every rock and spear of grass seemed familiar to him. He could see the old Meeting- house with its elevated pulpit, and its high square pews, and the stone horse-block near the east door, where our fathers and mothers mounted their horses, the one upon the saddle, and the other upon the pillion ; the venerable Tything-men, who acted as police officers, and the dreaded old Stocks, to be put in requisition in cases of necessity. All this, and more, was perfectly familiar to his recollection. He then asked the older portion of the assembly, who were inhabitants of the place, to take a ramble with him about the town; he described the location of many of the old inhab- itants, facetiously pictured their dwellings, the well-sweep, and the old oaken bucket, and gave many amusing incidents, show- ing the spirit of the times, and the respective peculiarities of some of the families-carrying the scene back to days within the recol- lection of the older inhabitants only. Fearing that his ramble would occupy too much time, he would close ; and if he had tres- passed too long upon their patience, his apology was, that the township was large, and the picture was so vivid to his mind, that it seemed to be living his life over again, and he did not wish to shorten his existence.
6. The Schools of Westminster, both public and private -not behind the rest in the State, as the men and women they have sent out can practically testify.
Rev. Charles Kendall, of Petersham, was then introduced. He said that being a native of the town, and receiving the first rudi- ments of his education in the district school, and his early classical education in the Academy near by, he could testify to their char- acter, and to the blessings they had conferred upon those who had enjoyed their privileges ; and in common with others, his thoughts often recurred to the old school-house, where a thousand pleasing
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recollections rushed upon his mind. His old playmates, their sly tricks, their hearty play, their hard, pleasing, and sometimes per- plexing studies, the labors of the teacher, the true friendships which were there contracted, the books which they studied, and even the benches on which they sat, rose up before him, and he seemed to be in the very midst of those pleasant scenes.
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