USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Danvers > Centennial celebration at Danvers, Mass., June 16, 1852 > Part 5
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
Justice demands a more distinct notice of those individuals who have taken a prominent part in the concerns of the town, and been identified with it, than has been given in the rapid description of incidents presented. The characteristics of a town are necessarily the result of individual efforts. Among
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those, who have left the deepest impress on its character, will be found
Daniel Eppes, Esq., Capt. Samuel Gardner, Capt. John Proctor, Nathaniel Putnam,
Joseph Putnam,
Samuel Holten,
William Shillaber,
Gideon Foster,
Israel Hutchinson,
Dr. Amos Putnam,
Nathan Felton,
Edward Southwick,
Samuel Page,
Squiers Shove,
Elias Putnam,
Jonathan Shove, Daniel P. King.
Of those who will be entitled to be remembered on the page of history, the following may be mentioned :-
Gen. Israel Putnam,
Gen. Gideon Foster,
Gen. Moses Porter,
Dr. Samuel Holten,
Col. Israel Hutchinson,
Dr. Amos Putnam,
Rev. Peter Clark,
Rev. Benjamin Wadsworth,
Col. Jeremiah Page,
Capt. Samuel Page,
Capt. Samuel Flint,
Col. Enoch Putnam,
Capt. Samuel Eppes,
Hon. Timothy Pickering,
Hon. Nathaniel Bowditch,
Hon. Daniel P. King.
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Of those good men who lived long and well, and were con- tent so to do, without any proclamation made of it, the follow- ing should not be overlooked :-
Levi Preston,
Caleb Oakes, Johnson Proctor, Eleazer Putnam,
Fitch Poole,
Ebenezer Shillaber,
. Stephen Needham, Samuel King, Malachi Felton,
Ebenezer King,
Moses Preston,
Stephen Proctor.
BIOGRAPHY OF GEN. GIDEON FOSTER.
Identified with the town of Danvers will ever be the name of Gen. Gideon Foster. Born in 1749, and coming upon the stage of life just as the town came into being, he grew with its growth, and continued nearly through its first century. His father was of Boxford. His mother was Lydia Goldthwait, a descendant of an early family in Danvers.
At the beginning of the Revolution, then in the vigor of manhood, full of patriotic ardor and physical energy, he was called to scenes of trial and danger in the battles of Lexington and Bunker Hill, and there established a reputation for valor that was never tarnished. Often have I listened with admira- tion to the narrative of the eventful scenes through which he passed.
On the morning of the 19th of April, 1775, he started, with the consent of Col. Pickering, commander of the regiment of Salem and vicinity, at the head of his company of minute-men ; and with such ardor did they move, that they passed on foot sixteen miles in four hours, to West Cambridge, where they met the enemy, on their return from Concord, near Lexington. Intent on the purpose in view, regardless of personal danger,
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when they heard the troops approaching, unmindful of their number, they took their station in a barn-yard by the road-side, and when they were directly opposite, they poured into them an effectual fire. Immediately they withdrew, under the cover of the woods, behind the hill, and were there met by the flank guard, when seven of their number were shot dead, and as many more wounded. Their names are inscribed on yonder monument, and will continue to awaken the liveliest emotions of freedom, in the breasts of patriots of every land, while the granite of our hills shall endure.
The facts relating to this engagement I had from Dennison Wallis and the General himself, together with the further fact, that he discharged his own musket at the enemy twelve times, loaded with two balls each time, with well-directed aim. And as he was remarkable for being a good shot, there can be no doubt he made his mark upon their ranks.
For more than seventy years, Gen. Foster was one of the most active and influential citizens of the town. For the last thirty years, it was his ambition to be the first to deposit his ballot, in all important elections. So unerring was his judg- ment, that he never failed to be the file leader of the majority, or wavered from the genuine Whig principles of '76. In his time, there was no doubt where Danvers would be found. Since his departure, there have arisen those who knew not Gideon, and the result has occasionally corresponded with this want of knowledge.
Gen. Foster will long be remembered for his private as well as his public virtues. Tried in no small measure by the hard- ships of adversity, his innate integrity never yielded to tempta- tion. Through life, he sustained the character of an honest man. Who does not remember with admiration that venerable form, bending under the infirmities of more than ninety years, as he guided his plough upon his scanty acres, or harnessed his horse to attend upon the temple of the Lord; and with what humility he bowed before the Deity, whom he so reverently worshipped ?
His virtues will ever be enshrined in our hearts, though (to
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our reproach be it spoken) no monument marks the resting- place of his ashes. His epitaph may now be supposed to read, Died Nov. 1, 1845, aged 96} years,-
" By strangers honored and by strangers mourned." *
BIOGRAPHY OF GEN. MOSES PORTER.
Moses Porter was born at Danvers, in 1757. He was an officer in the artillery service, under General Putnam, at Bunker Hill, and particularly distinguished for the bravery with which he fought. He was with Washington at the battle of Brandy- wine, and wounded at Trenton, on the Delaware. At the close of the Revolutionary war, he was the only officer of artillery retained on the peace establishment. He was with General Wayne, at his celebrated engagement with the Indians in 1794. He was commander at the taking of Fort George, in 1813 ;- and in many other positions during the war on the Western frontier. He was a soldier, and a brave one ;- uniting in an extraordinary manner, the suaviter in modo with the fortiter in re. I have heard him say, whenever danger or difficulty was apprehended, he threw off his epaulette and plume, and putting on his tight cap and short jacket, he wore them until all dis- turbing elements had passed away.
At the beginning of the war of 1812, he commanded at the port of Norfolk, and with such firmness were the enemy re- pulsed on their first visit, that they never found it convenient to call a second time.
He was an upright, honorable man, of mien dignified and commanding ; a rigid disciplinarian ; a Washingtonian in senti- ment ; of unwavering courage; uniting all the urbanities of the gentleman, with the inflexible firmness of the soldier. Danvers may be proud of furnishing, in Putnam and Porter, two as res-
* Here let me say, that the same envelope that contained the donation from George Peabody, Esq., of London, of $20,000 for the promotion of education and morality among us, authorized me to subscribe, in behalf of the donor, the sum of fifty dollars towards a monument to the memory of the General, as soon as a corresponding sympathy shall be awakened in the bosoms of his fellow-townsmen.
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olute soldiers as ever preceded Zachary Taylor or Winfield Scott in the service of their country.
Gen. Porter died at Cambridge, April, 1822, aged 65. His remains rest in the family burial-ground at Danvers.
SUMMARY VIEW.
A summary view of the condition of the town of Danvers, at the close of the first century of its independent existence, shows the following facts, viz. :-
Population, 8,110
Valuation,
$3,294,800
Estimated Annual Payments,-
For Religious Instruction, . . $10,000
For support of Free Schools, 10,000
For support of the Poor, · 5,000
For ordinary Municipal purposes, 5,000
I use round numbers, omitting fractions. A large part of the population are now engaged in mechanical and manufacturing pursuits. Many have recently come in, and can hardly be reckoned as permanent settlers. The facilities for employment are constantly enlarging ; and with the increasing facilities of intercourse through all parts of the country, and the continued industrial habits that have ever been the distinguishing charac- teristic of the town, imagination can hardly set bounds to the advances to be made .*
* On the next page will be found a table explanatory of the finances of Danvers.
Biographical sketches of most of those named on page 51, had been pre- pared; but they are omitted, to give place to more interesting matters, that sprung up on the day of the celebration.
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CONCLUDING REMARKS.
Descendants of the pioneers at Danvers! of Endicott, of Putnam, of Porter, of Preston, of Felton, of Waters, of Trask, of Osborn, and a host of others. Why have you come together this day ? Is it not to gain instruction from the contemplation of the deeds of your fathers ?
Be animated by their patriotism ;- be purified by their piety ; -be admonished by their follies ;- be encouraged by their industry ;- and in all things, wherein they were found worthy,
Valuations and Assessments in Danvers, from 1827 to 1852.
Year.
Valuation.
Per cent. of Town Tax.
Assessment.
1827
$1,870,700
.34
$6,360 38
1828
2,017,600
.32
6,456 32
1829
2,087,350
.32
6,679 52
1830
2,033,500
.44
8,947 40
1831
2,181,700
.31.8
6,581 78
1832
2,264,050
.32
7,244 96
1833
2,263,050
.36
8,146 98
1834
2,212,750
.35.5
7,855 26
1835
2,215,900
.35.5
7,866 44
1836
2,321,750
.34.5
8,010 04
1837
1,862,750
.50
9,313 75
1838
1,848,950
.44
8,135 38
1839
1,892.300
.44
8,326 12
1840
1,971,500
.50
9,857 50
1841
2,029,800
.43
8,728 14
1842
2,077,000
.46
9,554 20
1843
2,094,300
.45
9,404 35
1844
2,143,600
.50
10,718 00
1845
2,373,800
.62
14,717 56
1846
2,528,700
.72
18,406 64
1847
2,594,100
.63
16,342 83
1848
2,708,300
.56
15,166 48
1849
2,810,200
.56
15,737 12
1850
3,077,100
.70
21,539 70
1851
3,186,300
.82
26,127 66
1852
3,294,500
.76
25,038 20
Thus it appears, while the property in town has not doubled, taxation has increased four fold. It should also be remembered, that the highway, county, district, and religious taxes, usually amount to as much as the town tax. The amount of taxation in the town is not less than ten dollars annually on each thousand dollars of property.
This table has been compiled with care, and will afford to the curious in- quirer the best possible index of the progress and the management of the concerns of the town. It should serve as an admonition to the citizens to keep their expenditures within their means ;- a lesson of late too little regarded.
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strive to imitate their example. How can you better show yourselves worthy of your parentage ?
Here, where once grew the blueberry and the alder, and the frog and the turtle tuned their notes without annoyance, now spouts the steam engine, rolls the railroad car, and resounds the busy hum of industry of every description. Here the gushing fountains pour out resources inexhaustible through the tannin from the bark of the mountain. On the hills made fertile by the skill ;- on the plains enriched by the toils ;- on the mead- ows reclaimed by the art, of those who first landed on these forbidding shores, will ever be found rich mementos of their wisdom and their worth.
Though, in your coffers, the pearls of the Indies, or the glit- tering sands of California, may not abound, still, while the unfaultering hearts and strong arms of freemen are yours, no danger need be feared. The combined power of learning, liberty, and law, will be your ægis of protection in every emer- gency.
In conclusion, allow me to cite the following beautiful lines :-
" There is a land, of every land the pride, Beloved of Heaven o'er all the world beside ; There is a spot of earth supremely blest, A dearer, sweeter spot, than all the rest.
There woman reigns,-the mother, daughter, wife,
Strews with fresh flowers the thorny path of life.
Amidst her walks domestic duties meet,
And fireside pleasures gambol at her feet.
Where shall that land, that spot of earth, be found ? Art thou a man ? a patriot ? look around !
Oh thou shalt find, where'er thy footsteps roam, That land thy country, and that spot thy home."
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CONTENTS OF THE ADDRESS.
-
Introductory Remarks, . .
.
. 3
Ancient Naumkeag,
.
-
3
Name of Danvers,
5
Grant of land to Capt. John Endicott,
7
to John Humphrey, Esq.,
-
9
to John Putnam and Sons,
11
66 to Emanuel Downing,
11
Witchcraft Delusion,
· 12 to 19
Revolutionary Incidents, -
Battle of Lexington,
23
Battle of Bunker Hill, -
24
Heroes of the Revolution,
25
Extraordinary Age of Soldiers,
26
Religious Worship,
- 27 to 32
Education, and Free Schools,
- 32 to 36
Paupers, Support of, &c.,
- 36 to 38
Temperance movements,
· 38 to 39
Business of the Town,
- 39 to 40
Official Stations, .
· 41 to 44
Medical Profession,
· 44 to 45
Legal Profession,
46
African Slavery,
47
Burial Places,
48
Population of the Town,
·
49
Railroads, -
50
Gideon Foster, notice of, -
. 52 to 54
Moses Porter, notice of, .
· 54 to 55
Financial Table, .
.
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----
-
66 to Rev. Samuel Skelton,
0
.
1
....
- 19 to 23
.
.
v. a. Thayer & Ch Juthe Boston.
Gideon Faster Danvers March 8Th 9845,
Facsimile of his writing at 96 years of age.
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DANVERS :
A POEM.
BY ANDREW NICHOLS.
INTRODUCTION.
DANVERS, loved name, my native place, The dearest land on the broad face Of Earth, to me,-around thee cling Lov'd memories,-of these I sing ; Lov'd legends, which my youthful ear Drank with delight,-and here, yes here, I've tasted all the various sweets, Which man in his life's journey meets. Here too I've suffered, mourned, and shed The tears of grief, o'er loved ones dead. Committed to thy bosom lie
All of the dearest that could die,
And through their graves, I farthest see Into a blest futurity.
O Danvers ! how can I forget
A gem like thee so richly set, By all life's holiest powers enchas'd, And in my very heart encas'd. How can I then thy call refuse, The residence of ev'ry Muse, That has, with song, my pathway cheer'd, And doubly to my soul endear'd My home, sweet home, so full of charms, O how the thought with rapture warms ! Yes home, sweet home, I've never known, Except in Danvers, as my own.
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O Danvers, Danvers, proud am I, Who hold thee in esteem so high, On this Centennial Jubilee Thy Laureat and chief bard to be. Yes proud, tho' trembling now with fear, Lest I disgrace a theme so dear ;- Lest hands benumb'd by age and toil The sculpture of thy beauties spoil. And yet it seems so meet that they, Who in thy service have grown grey,- Who've loved thee longest, known thee well, Should on this day thy story tell,- Tho' not to risks of failure blind I dare essay the task assigned.
I.
What need is there that Danvers' sons should roam ? Has the broad earth a good not found at home, By those who ne'er have wandered ? Still they go, On other lands their labors to bestow ! Yes, go, moved by benevolence to give To others more than they from them receive ! Well, let them go, the sons of other soils Fill well their places here, and take the spoils By them abandoned !- cultivate her fields, And feast on dainties which old Danvers yields ! We bid right welcome to our homes and hearts All who bring here their industry and arts,- Rebuild waste places, or ope places new, Give zest to social life, good men and true, Who will the bounds of useful works extend, And act the parts of brother, helper, friend. None greet with purer joy this festive day Than these adopted citizens, who say ' Danvers to us has proved a Mother dear ; ' Life's richest banquet we have tasted here.'
And ye, self-exiled children, who have come T' embrace your Mother in your dear old home, Welcome, once more, into her outstretched arms ; O has she not for you still peerless charms ?
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Say, have you elsewhere in your wanderings found, Of heartfelt joys a more productive ground ?
II.
What son of Danvers can unmov'd survey The scene before us, and the prospect round, The moving panorama, bright and gay, Forest and pasture, tillage and meadow ground, Houses and workshops, factories and barns, And an industrious people busy there ! Comfort and thrift the roving eye discerns, With peace and plenty nestling everywhere ; Railroads and steamers, which facilitate Progress in all that's pleasing, good, or great, Give to the people here ubiquity, Unknown in ages past, and set them free O'er a wide field of usefulness to roam --- Work many miles abroad, yet live at home ; Schoolhouses, where the intellect acquires Strength to fight nobly the battles of life, Churches, soul-lifting to Heaven, whose spires Point to a rest from earth's sorrows and strife.
Or if alone upon the landscape, we
Bend all our thoughts, how beautiful and grand The varied prospects, various scenery,
Of hill and dale, brooks, lakelets, sea and land ; Those large morains,* our mother's swelling breasts,- Full of refreshing springs of water sweet ;- Those fertile plains, yon broken rocks where rests Volcanic power-its ancient work complete- These, by the lights which science o'er them throws, Teach morals, wisdom, and ideal arts- As rich as fam'd Parnassus' mount bestows, Or classic realm to favored bards imparts ; Yes, Beauty here her countless forms displays, Her rainbow-tinted, glorious, changeful rays Present an everpleasing panorama, To recreate us thro' life's painful drama.
* Hills formed by the diluvial drift.
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To aid our moral culture 'round us here, The graves of honored ancestors appear, Scattered on every side o'er hill and dale, Telling, to thoughtful souls, a most instructive tale.
III.
The past returns, the present disappears, Old Time rolls backward nearly twelve score years ; Dense forests fill these vales, those hill tops crown, Rills, brooks, and rivers send their waters down An unobstructed tribute to the sea,
And wild herds graze on fertile hill and lea. Here lives the Indian, nature's savage child, Fierce as the panther, as the roebuck wild, Housed in wigwams, simple structures these- The frames are poles, or small straight sapling trees, In circles, or in squares, fixed in the ground, Their tops with strips of bark together bound ; With mats or bark well cover'd, tight and warm, Shelter'd by forest trees from sun and storm ; A bull-rush mat a side hole covers o'er, Which is at once a window and a door ; A central fire, by which their food they cook, And a top hole to give egress to smoke. Around this fire, when chilled by Winter's cold, In skins or blankets wrapp'd, the young and old Sleep, work or game ; feast, smoke, dance, paint or sing, Prepare to hunt or fight ; and hither bring The spoils ; here squaws, pappooses, guests repose, Warriors and captives all together doze. But many a wigwam now a ruin lies ; The yellow plague, which Powow's art defies, Has Massachusetts warriors swept away ; Their thousands down to hundreds are reduc'd ; Cold, cold, the ashes on their hearth-stones lay, Their bows unstrung, their traps and nets unus'd .*
* In 1612-13, the Massachusetts Tribe of Indians, which had previously numbered 3000 warriors, was so reduced by the "yellow plague," that there- after it consisted of 300 men only, besides women and children .- Gookin's Historical Collections, 1654.
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IV.
I sing of ancient times, when sires of ours First sought a home upon these pleasant shores : So pleasant now, but when they first came here A howling wilderness, cold, dark and drear. O why did those, who had been bred in ease, Defy the dangers of uncharted seas, And throw themselves, and all they dearly prized, Upon a scheme so wild, so ill advised ? They had no home in England ; ruthless war On all their rights, which were worth living for, Had so reduced them to despotic thrall, That their free souls were all that they could call Their own. No home ! for unmolested, they Could not enjoy the privilege to pray Their God to bless them ; nor themselves employ In acts of worship, the soul's highest joy, Such as their conscience did of them require, And which alone could save them from the fire Unquenchable. No home ! tyrannic power Had plac'd its spies in their most private bower- No home ! the hearth which cheered their early years, Was desecrated then by blood and tears, And e'en their fathers' venerated graves Rebuked them with-' How can our sons be slaves ?
' It was in vain we shed our blood to free ' The land from papal thrall and prelacy, ' If you succumb beneath the galling chain ' Imposed by upstart Popes, and prelates vain.' No ; 'twas a homeless, persecuted band, Who sought a home in this then savage land, A place of rest where they might sheltered be, Beneath their own dear vine, and fruitful tree. How trifling all the ills of outward life To inward conflicts, and the spirit's strife ! They felt this truth, 'tis not by bread alone Man lives and makes life's benefits his own ; But every word, each providence of God, Is to the soul its most nutritious food.
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Beneath God's seeming frown there ever lies A hidden good, which trusting souls may seize And find support. This well the pilgrims knew, Their history proves the cheering doctrine true ; And it proves also, that to earnest souls, In whom faith all their energies controls, God gives sure conquest. But conquest may be A blessing or a curse, may bind or free. God gives eternal principles, and then Leaves their employment to the choice of men. Good principles may be by men abused, Yes, faith in God in Satan's service used.
V.
Lo! yonder bay is plough'd by unknown keels, Her parting water a new impulse feels ; Where heretofore nought save the light canoe Of Indian floated, or some raft of trees, A noble ship comes slowly on, her crew Right hardy children of the stormy seas,
And numerous passengers now throng her deck ; With throbbing hearts and watery eyes survey The wood-crowned headlands, every creek inspect ; And look admiring 'round the spacious bay ! The cannon utters its terrific voice, -- The wild beasts startled to their coverts flee, Echo returns their shouts, no other noise,-
No human beings on the shores they see !* They land ; they settle, that is, houses build,- With battle axe, the forest trees assail ;- They plant in virgin soils, before untilled, Maintain close walk with God, their sins bewail, And sternly meet, with an unflinching mind, The evils of their lot, their enemies- Sickness, death, devils ; deeming them designed To try their faith, and make them strong and wise. Death decimates their ranks, disease consumes Their strength, but to their steady purpose true
A letter from one of the first settlers states this fact .- Mass. Hist. Coll.
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Their task postponed, returning strength resumes, Or other hands th' unfinished works renew ; So toil'd and suffered our forefathers here. How all their hardships do their names endear, Or should endear to us, inheritors of all Their toil has purchased, or their valor won- Freedom from bigot's rule, from tyrant's thrall, The skill and power to conquer, or to shun, The dreaded evils that beset our race,
Between the cradle and its resting place.
VI.
Our Puritan ancestors start from their graves, And lo ! now before us appear, As when, wafted over the Atlantic's waves, They planted a colony here.
In separate groups the old emigrants come, In feelings and objects the same, To enjoy their religion, establish a home, God's laws re-enact and proclaim.
So grave is their object, how can they be gay, Or give to frivolity place ?
Pilgrims and strangers, not long here to stay, Their wealth and their staff is God's grace.
For their God is to them a stern reality, Almighty to help in their need, Omniscient, their out and in goings to see ; Omnipresent, to teach, guard and lead.
They too have a Devil most horribly great, To seduce, to deceive, and destroy ; Who, if not permitted to ruin the State, Could greatly disturb and annoy.
Surrounded by heathen to bless or to kill, Their lives in their hands day and night, With musket, hoe, axe, they go out on their hill, To make clearings, plant, or to fight. 9 i
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With good Scripture language each tongue well supplied, Most effective, sound orators, they Think, teach, work, or fight, as they stand side by side, Always ready for deadly affray.
Av'rice and bigotry too find a seat By the side of more liberal views ;
For freedom of conscience death ready to meet, Yet the same boon to others refuse.
Roger Williams from Salem is driven away, Mrs. Hutchinson smirch'd and defam'd ; Quakers and witches are hung ; woful day ! With sorrow remember'd and nam'd.
Yet in spite of their blue laws, the lasses will eye Their beaux upon Sabbath and fast ; And beaux will exchange with them glances tho' sly, Which must make impressions to last,
Till the blest consummation of oneness for life- Till death shall the smitten ones part, Till forgotten th' relation of husband and wife, All the long-cherished wealth of the heart !
In spite of stern synods, some people would think For themselves, and their notions proclaim ; Tho' warden or tythingman threaten or wink, And church canons at them should aim.
Hence Quakers may hang, Anabaptists may flee ; But heresy's seed, widely sown, Will spring up and grow, aye, become quite a tree, Ere it to the watchmen be known.
The Quakers, by martyrdom strengthened, sit down, Non-resistant in Brooksby,* resolved to enjoy Their rights God-defended, in this hostile town, The gospel of peace to proclaim, their employ.
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