USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Groton > Groton historical series. A collection of papers relating to the history of the town of Groton, Massachusetts, Vol III > Part 2
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 | 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
IO
THE PHYSICIANS OF GROTON.
in 1779, and was graduated in course, in 1783. Very soon, if not immediately afterwards, he began the study of physic with his father, the subject of the preceding article, and finished his pro- fessional education under the celebrated Dr. James Lloyd of Bos- ton. He passed the Board of Censors of the Massachusetts Medi- cal Society, as licentiate, in June, 1786.
In noticing the professional progress of Dr. Prescott it is indis pensable that some reference should be made to the times and circumstances of his early life, which continued to exert a very marked influence on the best period of his succeeding history. It will be seen by dates that he was but a youth in the earlier periods of the revolution ; but he was old enough to understand some of its distinguishing features, the moral and intellectual power it was exerting, and especially would he after no long time learn that whatever the individual might be in profession or talent, he would not fulfil his whole duty by a private occupation. The medical profession had given a noble illustration of this in the instances of its ablest men, who had left its duties for those of the field, or made the field the scene of their professional labors. Educated men of all the professions continued for many years after the close of the war to take a part in municipal or state affairs, which is quite unknown to those of the present day ; and he who was faith- ful in these relations, was not thought neglectful of his peculiar labors, however far his new duties might take him from the place of his more appropriate ones. These remarks are neither offered as an explanation, nor as an apology for the course pursued by Dr. Prescott in his early career. They are made, because they present a view, an imperfect one it is acknowledged, of a very peculiar and interesting time of our history, and serve to show how deep was the whole influence of the age upon the well educated and able men of that period. In one year after his admission to the profession, Dr. Prescott became himself an instance of what has now been briefly adverted to.
In January, 1787, a regiment was detached from the third divi- sion of the militia of the commonwealth, under the command of Col. Henry Woods, and together with other regiments from the several counties, was placed under the command of Gen. Lincoln. Dr. Prescott was commissioned as surgeon to these forces, and with his commission he received a blank warrant and a request that he would insert the name of such person as he might wish to select for his mate. The purpose for collecting these troops
II
THE PHYSICIANS OF GROTON.
was the suppression of Shays's rebellion, and although this was accomplished in a few weeks, the army was obliged to traverse the western counties during the inclement season of that severe win- ter. Dr. Prescott afterwards was made surgeon of the sixth regi- ment of the third division of the militia, and retained his office till he resigned in 1800.
The municipal and state offices filled by Dr. Prescott, show the public estimation in which he was held, and the willingness with which he met the professional sacrifices required by the perform- ance of his public duties. In 1789 he was commissioned as a Justice of the Peace for the county of Middlesex, and was contin- ued in it by septennial appointments without application and with- out interruption during his residence in that county. He was repeatedly chosen member of the General Court of the state as a representative from Groton, and declined repeated solicitations to serve in the senate for the county of Middlesex. In his own town Dr. Prescott sustained for many years the useful offices of clerk to the corporation, chairman of the board of selectmen, and of overseers of the poor, &c. &c. In this variety of municipal func- tions which he faithfully discharged, there is discovered the deep interest which he took in the prosperity of his native town, for they were alike uncongenial with his taste and his profession. Dr. Pres- cott is remembered for the zeal with which he labored to procure for his town and county, the benefits of a more liberal instruction than that to which they had been accustomed. He was one of the ori- ginal founders of the Academy of Groton, and was a trustee, and the treasurer of that institution. When he removed to Newbury- port, he resigned these trusts, and was soon after elected a Trustee of Dinmmer's Academy. He devoted a portion of his leisure to agriculture, and was rewarded for his zeal in this pursuit by the consideration in which he was held by the Massachusetts Agricul- tural Society, of which he was a member, and by the Western Society of Middlesex Husbandmen, of which he was President.
It is, however, in his attainments, in his reputation, and in his usefulness as a physician, that Dr. Prescott's best claims are laid for a memory among his living brethren, and for this record among the dead. In 1800 he was elected a member of the Massachusetts Medical Society. He was afterwards chosen a counsellor of the society for the district in which he lived. He pronounced the an- nual discourse in 1813 ; in 1814 he received the honorary degree of Doctor in Medicine from Harvard University ; in 1825 he was
12
THE PHYSICIANS OF GROTON.
unanimously elected a member of the Corporation of the Massa- chusetts General Hospital ; and was elected Vice President of the Medical Society in 1827. This is the public testimony which has been offered by his professional brethren to his talents, to his zeal, and to his success. Dr. Prescott had a very extensive practice in his native town, and in the towns in its vicinity ; but, thinking that an asthmatic habit and a commencing dropsy of the chest might be diminished or removed by living near the sea, and by the greater regularity of life in a large town than could be adopted or pursued in a country practice, he removed with his family from Groton to Newburyport in February, 1811. In the latter place his practice soon became extensive, and continued so until the time of his death. During his extensive professional and other engagements, Dr. Prescott still found time to study and inform himself of the va- rious discoveries and improvements daily making in medical sci- ence both at home and abroad. He had carly been remarkable for his quick apprehension and retentive memory. At college he was distinguished among his class for his acquaintance with the classics and with natural history. Through life he maintained a fondness for these studies, and amidst the engrossing duties of his profession he secured to himself leisure for the cultivation of general and more elegant literature. Habits of mind were thus produced and pre- ' served, highly favorable for the best uses of medical study. He not only studied, but labored to add to the stock of useful knowl- edge in medicine by publishing the results of his own observations. Some valuable articles were contributed by him to the New-England Journal of Medicine and Surgery ; but his most important publica- tion was the discourse before mentioned, which he delivered before the Medical Society [on June 2, 1813]. This discourse is entitled, " Dissertation on the Natural History and Medicinal Effects of the Secale Cornutum or Ergot."1 Dr. Prescott was led to the use of this article, and to the study of its effects, by a letter addressed to Dr. Akerly by Dr. J. Stearns of Albany, and published in the sec- ond volume of the New-York Medical Repository. Many of the statements of Dr. S. are confirmed by Dr. Prescott, and any differ- ence of opinion between them, or diversity of result, very candidly stated. This dissertation was very favorably received by the pro- fession. It was reprinted in Philadelphia and London, and was
1 [ This address was printed among the annual dissertations of the Medical Society, and also as a separate pamphlet (Svo, pages 16) with an engraved plate at the end, showing figures of spurred rye.]
13
THE PHYSICIANS OF GROTON.
translated into the French and German languages, and was pub- lished in full, so far as relates to the medicinal properties of Ergot, in the article Ergot, in the 13th volume of the French " Diction- naire des Sciences Médicales." The interest Dr. P. took in the investigation of the properties of this substance, arose, very prob- ably, from his zeal in the study and practice of midwifery, in which department of the art he was very successful. The attention of physicians has been strongly directed to the use of Ergot since the publication of this discourse ; and to this day scarcely a number of a medical journal arrives from abroad, which does not contain some notice of the extended employment of this active medicine.
Dr. Prescott was highly respected and beloved by his patients. He had, perhaps, the most extensive practice of any physician in the county in which he lived. He acquired this confidence, the most valuable possession which a physician can acquire, by ardent zeal in the cause of the sick, diligent study, and acute observation. His manners were frank, manly and engaging, and though long afflicted with deafness, he had none of the irritability so common to that infirmity. His manners indeed were founded on a natural benevolence of heart, which led him to connect his own happiness with the welfare of those who were about him. In his domestic relations he was distinguished by equanimity of temper, kindness of manners and great warmth of affection. He sought in the bosom of his family the sources of his own happiness, which he was ever ready to sacrifice to the permanent advancement of theirs. In his political sentiments he was undisguised and con- sistent through life. The zeal with which he co-operated in the suppression of Shays's rebellion, showed his early attachment to good order and constitutional principles, and these he never thought proper to desert when desertion of them became fashion- able. He was a firm believer in christianity, and at an early age made a public profession of his faith.
Dr. P. was twice married, first to Ann Whiting, daughter of Leonard Whiting, Esq. of Hollis, by whom he had nine children, six of whom survived him ; and afterwards to Elizabeth, widow of Thomas Oliver, Esq. who is still living.
He died in Newburyport, September 26th, 1827, after a short illness, of typhus fever, in the G6th year of his age.
The following advertisement in the "Columbian Centinel," September 22, 1810, refers to the estate which had previously
.
14
THE PHYSICIANS OF GROTON.
belonged to Dr. Oliver Prescott, the father, but which at that time was offered for sale by Dr. Oliver Prescott, the son. It is situated at the lower end of the village street, near the fork of the roads. The dwelling was afterward burned on the night of February 1, 1815 ; and the house built on the site is now kept as a tavern.
Valuable Real Estate in Groton.
THE Subscriber offers for sale, his DWELLING-HOUSE, Out-
Houses, and Farm, situated in the town of Groton, about one fourth of a mile from the Meeting-House and Academy, and on the post road from Boston to Keene, N. H. and Windsor, Vt. The House is large and commodious, the Farm contains about one hundred acres of Land, equal in goodness, perhaps, to any in the Commonwealth. The situation of the Buildings and quality of the Land are too well known to require a particular description. A liberal credit will be given for a great proportion of the purchase money.
Groton, Sept. 22, 1810.
OLIVER PRESCOTT.
N. B. Any quantity of the Land, even to one acre, will be sold with the buildings, if most agreeable to the purchaser.
DR. JOSEPH MANSFIELD was a son of Richard and Eliza- beth (Whittemore) Mansfield, and born in Lynn on Decem- ber 17, 1770. His father was born in the same town on June 17, 1744, and his mother was born - in Salem, probably - on February 22, 1748 ; she was a daughter of Edmund and Keziah (Burrage ) Whittemore.
Dr. Mansfield graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 1801 ; and among his classmates were Tyler Bigelow, Thomas Bond, James Abbot Cummings, Timothy Fuller, Luther Lawrence, Stephen Minot, and William Bant Sulli- van, who were either natives or at some time residents of Groton. Both while an undergraduate and while studying his profession, he kept the district school on Farmers' Row, and even after he had acquired his profession, he taught the same school with the understanding that his hours of instruction should conform somewhat to the needs of his practice. He
15
THE PHYSICIANS OF GROTON.
studied medicine with Dr. Oliver Prescott, Jr., at that time one of the most eminent physicians in the Commonwealth. While in college, he took high rank as a scholar, and at an exhibition near the end of his Junior year he delivered a poem which attracted some attention in literary circles. It was printed under the following title : "Hope, a poem, delivered in the chapel of Harvard University, at a public exhibition, July 8th, 1800. By Joseph Mansfield, a Junior Sophister." Cambridge. Printed by William Hilliard. 1800 (4to. pages 15). A second edition of the poem appeared at Fitchburg in the year 1871 (16mo. pages 10).
Dr. Mansfield was married on June 11, 1805, to Abi, daughter of Benjamin and Meriel (Nichols) Hartwell, who was born at Shirley on October 9, 1785, and died at Groton on February 8, 1871. After his marriage he lived for a while on Farmers' Row, in the house occupied by J. K. Bennett, - when Mr. Butler's Map of Groton was made in the year 1832, - but now moved away. About 1810 he built the large dwelling with brick ends, near the Baptist Meeting- house, where he resided until his death, which took place on April 23, 1830.
His son, George Mansfield, born at Groton on October 8, 1807, also studied medicine, under the tuition of Dr. Nehe- miah Cutter, of Pepperell, and graduated at the Harvard Medical School in the Class of 1832. He was married on November 15, 1832, to Hannah Maria Curtis, of Boston. At that time Dr. Mansfield was a resident of Waltham, but later he lived for many years in Lowell, where he practised dentis- try ; and he died at Janesville, Wisconsin, on July 25, 1869.
The following account of Dr. Joseph Mansfield is given in James Robinson Newhall's History of Lynn, published in the year 1883 :-
This individual, for many years a reputable practising physician in Groton, Mass., was born on the 17th of December, 1770, in the old Mansfield house, known also as the Moulton house, on the north side of Boston street, opposite the foot of Marion, and was a lineal descendant of Andrew Mansfield, the first Town Clerk. He graduated at Harvard college in 1801, and soon applied him-
16
THIE PHYSICIANS OF GROTON.
self to the study of medicine, the practice of which he pursued as the business of his life, which terminated on the 23d of April, 1830.
Mr. Mansfield early exhibited poetic talents which bid fair to place his name among the foremost of American bards. But he seems not to have been ambitious of any such distinction and hence did not cultivate his rare gift. On the 8th of January [July], 1800, he delivered a poem in the chapel of Harvard college, for which he took the prize of eighty dollars, offered by the faculty for the best metrical production. The poem is entitled HOPE, and is two hundred and twenty-four lines in length. In reading it one is reminded of Pope's philosophical style ; though there are passages in a sentimental vein, and some in a playful. And as it was written at a period of intense political agitation, there are highly patriotic strains. The first and last stanzas, with a single intervening one will be here introduced.
I am not blest, but may hereafter be : Who knows what fortune has in store for me ? This is the language common to mankind, Nor is to age, or rank, or sex, confined Hope points to each some not far distant day, When every blessing will his wish obey ; When to possess, he only need require ; Fruition's self will supersede desire.
See doting parents sedulously trace The opening beauties of their infant's face ; Commencing physiognomists, they find A world of wonders in its features joined ; The mother reads, and comments as she reads ; My child was born for more than mortal deeds ; Then Hope steps up and whispers by her side, You cradle in your arms creation's pride.
We hope, long as the central orb attracts, Long as the force of gravitation acts,
Long as the East is opposite the West, Long as the name of Washington is blest, Long as the atheist hopes to sleep in dust, Long as the sons of anarchy are curst, Long as the future differs from the past, - So long, Columbia, will thy Freedom last. But should the monster Faction break his chains, And fiery demagogues usurp the reins - We hope that future Washingtous may rise, Or rather make a visit from the skies.
17
THE PHYSICIANS OF . GROTON.
An accident which happened to Mr. Mansfield, as narrated by Mr. John T. Moulton, was so singular as to merit notice here. "While bathing near Chase's mill he was seized with the cramp in his limbs and so disabled that he could not reach the shore, and when found by his companions, who were at work, haying, on the marsh near by, was supposed to be drowned ; but by the applica- tion of the proper means he was resuscitated and taken home, but did not regain his consciousness for some days. Then, awaking from sleep, he suddenly exclaimed, 'Mother, where have I been ?' HIe seemed to have lost what knowledge he had acquired and his mind was like that of a child, so that it was necessary for him to begin and learn again his letters as he had done when a boy."
It may not be inappropriate, in closing this notice, to remark that a poetic vein seems to have run in this family connection. Mr. John T. Moulton, who delivered the much-applauded poem at the reunion of the High School graduates, May 19, 1865, is one of the line ; and Solomon Moulton, of whom a biographical notice with specimens of his writing may be found in the 1865 edition of our History, and of whose poetic talents Mr. Lewis frequently spoke in high terms, was an uncle of John T. And this latter gentleman has, among his valuable collection, a number of poems, in manu- script, of Mr. Mansfield, the subject of this notice, which it is hoped may at some future time appear in print. (Pages 170-172.)
DR. JEREMY STIMSON was the eldest child of George and Abigail Stimson, and born at Hopkinton, on October 13, 1751. He was married, first, to Nancy Jones (published at Hopkinton, on August 20, 1779, where he is recorded as of Marlborough) ; and, secondly, on December 19, 1807, at Groton, to Mrs. Abi (Nichols) Richardson, widow of Jephthah Rich- ardson, and daughter of Israel Nichols, of Leominster. Dur- ing many years her first husband kept a tavern, on the site of the Baptist Meeting-house, where he died on October 9, 1806, at the age of 49 years. At the time of the second marriage Mrs. Richardson was living on the place now occu- pied by Mrs. Mary Tileston (Humphrey) Shumway ; and here Dr. Stimson resided for a short period, though he did not practise his profession at the time. The marriage did not prove to be a happy one; and soon afterward there was a mutual separation, when Dr. Stimson returned to Hopkinton,
18
THE PHYSICIANS OF GROTON.
where he died on January 24, 1821. See " Groton Epitaphs," page 162. The following entry is found in the Groton records : -
Abi Stimson, formerly wife of Jephthah Richardson, deceased, and afterwards the wife of Jeremy Stimson, also deceased, died at Groton, May 17, 1825.
DR. AMOS BANCROFT was a son of Edmund and Rachel (Howard | Barron ) Bancroft, of Pepperell, where he was born on May 23, 1767. He graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 1791, and studied medicine with Dr. Isaac Hurd, of Concord, and Dr. Oliver Prescott, Jr., of Groton. He began the practice of his profession at Westford, but soon afterward went to Weston, where he remained until the year 1811, when he removed to Groton. He was married, first, on August 29, 1796, to Abigail, daughter of Captain Leonard and Ann (Hall) Whiting, of Hollis, New Hampshire, who was born on March 25, 1772, and died at Weston, on December 4, 1799; secondly, on October 7, 1800, to Sarah, daughter of Henry and Faith (Savage) Bass, of Boston, who was born on April 21, 1768, and died on April 30, 1837; thirdly, on October 17, 1839, to Eliza Doane, of Boston, who died on November 11, I840; and fourthly, on October 31, 1841, to Mary, daughter of Richard and Martha (Hall) Kneeland, who was born on February 25, 1789, and died at Westford on April 22, 1862. The first wife and the last were cousins.
Dr. Bancroft had a large practice, and at various times a considerable number of medical students under his charge, including among them the brothers James Freeman Dana and Samuel Luther Dana, who were grandsons of the Rev- erend Samuel Dana, a former minister of the town, and graduates of Harvard College in the Class of 1813; Jonathan Newell, of Stow, and Stillman Spaulding, of Lexington. Hle was frequently called in consultation by other physicians, and often at a long distance from home. In those days there were no railroads, and travelling was attended with many difficulties. During the winter, when the roads were blocked up with snow, he was obliged sometimes to travel on snow-
19
THE PHYSICIANS OF GROTON.
shoes ; and, as his patients lived many miles apart, he was often absent from home for several successive days. To add to his discomfort on such occasions, it was difficult to obtain proper food, though there were at that period but few dwell- ings where he could not procure some New England rum or other spirit to help restore exhausted nature.
His intimacy with some of the physicians of Boston and its neighborhood, and his punctual attendance at the meetings of the Massachusetts Medical Society, of which association he was a Councillor, obliged him to make frequent journeys to that city, which were always taken with his own horse and chaise or sulky.
A story is told of him that he stopped late one evening at the Ridge Hill tavern, in order to see a patient. Passing through the bar-room he noticed two evil-looking men, who eyed him suspiciously ; and when going out, after his visit was made, he looked for them, but they were gone. The road leading from the tavern was lonely, and the village three miles away. As he had considerable money about him, he felt some misgivings, which proved to be well grounded, for he had no sooner reached a particularly secluded spot than these very men stepped out of the undergrowth by the road- side and tried to stop his horse. One of them snatched at the bridle, but missed it, as the horse threw up his head at the time; and Dr. Bancroft, whipping the animal, left the men far behind, but not before a bullet had pierced the back of the sulky, and whizzed close by his ear.
Dr. Bancroft rarely left home for pleasure ; but in the year 1829 his health demanded a change, and in company with a brother he went West in order to visit a half-sister, Mrs. Mary (Bancroft) Dana, then living at Marietta, Ohio. It was a long and tedious journey, but the trip benefited him.
Dr. Bancroft was a member of the First Parish Church (Unitarian) in Groton, and one of the eight mentioned in Mr. Butler's History (page 197), who received from the seceders a note of pretended excommunication. He was a constant attendant on the Sunday exercises until his hearing became much impaired. His health was never strong ; but the severe
20
THE PHYSICIANS OF GROTON.
attacks of illness to which he was subject decreased in fre- quency as his years advanced. On July 12, 1848, while walking down State Street in Boston, he stepped from the sidewalk in order to cross the way, when a wagon coming along rapidly knocked him down, and injured him so severely that he died a few hours later. The following account of the fatal mishap appears in the "Daily Evening Transcript " of that day : -
SERIOUS ACCIDENT. As the venerable Dr. Amos Bancroft, of Groton, was crossing State street this morning at 11 o'clock, he was struck in the head by the shaft of a wagon driven through the street by D. Lawrence, Dover, N. H., knocked down, and rendered senseless by the shock. He was taken up and carried to the apothecary shop of Dr. Brown by police officer Whiting, and Dr. Shattuck and other physicians who happened to be near were promptly on hand to render aid and assistance. He was taken to No. I Crescent Place, where every aid possible for his relief will be administered. He bled profusely from the ear, and it is feared he is fatally injured. Dr. Bancroft is 77 [81] years of age, and par- tially deaf, and of defective eyesight. The last information we had, Dr. B. had partially recovered his senses, but was very weak from the great loss of blood.
Dr. Mansfield and Dr. Bancroft were the last physicians in town who used to ride on horseback, with saddle-bags, while visiting patients, although they also drove in sulkies. In very early days, owing to bad roads, physicians on their professional rounds were in the habit of riding ; and it was near the beginning of the present century, in this neighbor- hood, that the sulky, or covered gig, came into fashion. At the present time the four-wheeled buggy exclusively is used by the doctors.
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.