USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Cambridge > Historic houses and spots in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and near-by towns; > Part 2
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In the stone building here erected a school was kept till 1769, when it was removed to the southerly side of Garden Street, a short distance north of Appian Way, and there con- tinued until about 1838.
This was the school (now the Washington) spoken of by Johnson, in 1643, in his " Wonder Working Providence," as " a faire Grammar Schoole."
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Cambridge.
SITE OF THE FIRST MEETING HOUSE IN CAMBRIDGE.
ERECTED A.D. 1632.
These words are on the granite foundation of a building on Mt. Auburn Street, corner of Dunster.
"This meeting-house was a plain and simple structure, probably built of logs, and had a thatched roof. The con- gregation at first were called together by the beating of a drum. Here preached the gifted Hooker for two years, who was styled ' the light of the western churches,' and the pious Thomas Shepard for thirteen years."
In 1642 the first Harvard College commencement exer- cises were held in this church.
27
Cambridge.
THE HOUSE OF JOHN WATSON.
On the west side of Massachusetts Avenue, near Spruce Street, a tablet is placed, marking the spot where three citi- zens of Cambridge were killed, April 19, 1775 : viz., John Hicks, William Marcy, and Moses Richardson, the last named being the great-grandfather of Captain James P. Richardson. The company commanded by the latter was probably the first company of soldiers to start for the de- fence of Washington at the beginning of the Great Rebellion in 1861. The house west of the tablet was a witness of the tragedies, and was the home of John Watson, a farmer.
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Cambridge.
HERE LIVED
STEPHEN DAYE,
FIRST PRINTER IN
BRITISH AMERICA.
1638-1668.
The tablet inscribed as above is on the easterly side of a building numbered 1732 at Harvard Square.
Stephen Daye was succeeded by his son, Matthew, and he, in 1649, by Samuel Green ; "and for forty years all the printing done in America was at Cambridge." " About one hundred works bear the Cambridge imprint prior to the year 1700, the chief of which is the Bible translated into the Indian language, by John Eliot, a copy of which is now in the library at Harvard College."
It is worthy of note that printing is still one of the lead- ing industries of Cambridge.
29
Cambridge.
THOMAS DUDLEY, FOUNDER OF CAMBRIDGE, GOVERNOR OF MASSACHUSETTS, LIVED HERE IN 1630.
This tablet is on Dunster Street, corner of South.
Thomas Dudley was governor four years, deputy governor for thirteen, and assistant governor for eight years, and was major-general of all the forces in 1644. He died in Rox- bury, in 1653, at the age of seventy-six years.
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Cambridge.
IN 1775
GENERAL PUTNAM
HAD HIS HEADQUARTERS
IN THE HOUSE
WHICH STOOD HERE.
The house stood on Inman Street, near the City Hall, and was that of Ralph Inman, a Tory, who was arrested in 1776.
It is interesting to note the fact that his daughter became the wife of Captain John Linzee, who was in command of the British man-of-war, " Falcon," stationed in the Charles River at the time of the battle of Bunker Hill, and that their granddaughter became the wife of the historian, Pres- cott, grandson of Colonel William Prescott, who commanded the Americans at the same battle.
" The crossed swords,"-those of Colonel Prescott and Captain Linzee, - worn during the battle, is an object of interest to be seen at the rooms of the Massachusetts His- torical Society, Boston.
31
Cambridge.
ON THIS SPOT
IN 1630
STOOD AN ANCIENT OAK
UNDER WHICH WERE HELD
COLONIAL ELECTIONS.
THIS SCION OF THE
WASHINGTON ELM
WAS PLANTED
MAY, 1896.
The tablet is on the common, the Massachusetts Avenue side, nearly opposite the head of Cambridge Street.
From Colonel T. W. Higginson we learn that there took place under this oak tree a very exciting election contest, in 1637, between the friends of the governor, Sir Henry Vane, whose statue may now be seen in the Boston Public Library, and those of John Winthrop, the latter being victo- rious largely in consequence of an earnest speech of Rev. John Wilson, first minister of Boston, who stood among the branches of the old oak during the delivery of this speech.
32
Cambridge.
On the left bank of Charles River, near the City Hospital, Mount Auburn Street, is a tablet inclosed by an iron fence and bearing the following inscription :
ON THIS SPOT
IN THE YEAR 1000
LEIF ERICKSON
BUILT HIS HOUSE IN
VINELAND.
This tablet was placed here by Professor Eben Norton Horsford, whose patient and exhaustive researches led him to believe the territory in this vicinity to be identical with the Vineland of the Northmen.
Farther west are two other spots with rude inclosures, one the supposed site of another Northman's house and the other a paved pathway leading from the river to one of the houses. It is said to be the custom of the people of Iceland and Greenland to-day to construct such pathways.
Professor Horsford was born in Moscow, New York, in 1818, and died January 1, 1893. He was Rumford profes- sor at Harvard from 1847 to 1863. His name is a house- hold word throughout the land in consequence of his useful chemical discoveries and for his broad charities and educa- tional endowments. There came to the knowledge of the author recently an incident in the life of the great professor that deserves to be much emphasized and frequently imi- tated. On being presented with his tax bill on one occa- sion, he promptly informed the assessors that it was too small, and that he desired to bear his full share of the burden of taxation.
Cambridge.
33
PUTNAM SCHOOL
SITE OF
FORT PUTNAM
ERECTED BY THE AMERICAN FORCES
DEC. 1775 DURING THE SIEGE OF BOSTON.
The site is to be found on the corner of Otis and Fourth Streets, East Cambridge. The fort was a strong one, and was constructed during a bombardment by a British man-of- war only a half-mile distant. A cannon-ball fired from this fort struck the side of the Brattle Street Church, Boston, at some time during the siege, and can now be seen at the rooms of the Massachusetts Historical Society, Boston.
34
Cambridge.
Our good city is not without articles of historic and liter- ary interest, as may be seen by a visit to the Cambridge Public Library, situated on Broadway, between Irving and Trowbridge Streets.
Among the objects worthy of special mention are :
The manuscript of The Progress of the World, by J. R. Lowell ; Margaret Fuller's European Note Book; manu- script letters of Longfellow, Lowell, Everett, R. H. Dana, and Margaret Fuller - all of Cambridge, - of Washington, Jefferson, and Santa Anna; a silk flag sent to the 38th Massachusetts Regiment by Cambridge ladies ; a copy of the New England Chronicle of December 14-21, 1775, which was printed in Stoughton Hall, Harvard College. There are also Indian stone implements from Longfellow Park; a Cambridge tax bill of 1790; a cane from the wood of the " Spreading Chestnut Tree," gift of Dr. Lucius R. Paige ; shoes worn by the wife of General Washington; and a silk badge worn at Washington's inauguration. These and many more articles of historic value and interest may be seen by teachers and their pupils by making proper previous arrange- ments with the librarian.
35
Arlington.
1805045
To one familiar with the picturesque topography of Arling- ton (why could it not have retained its Indian name of Menotomy ?) there can be no surprise at the evident con- tentment of the people with their situation. The "Heights" are visited at almost all seasons of the year for a view almost unsurpassed in its extent and loveliness. Somehow, we cannot hear the name without having visions of pure air and sparkling spring water. Even the robin becomes so enamored of the sheltered nooks and secluded valleys that he is fast forgetting his migratory habits, and actually spends whole winters here.
Best of all, the people are living up to the patriotic tradi- tions of their earlier history, an evidence of which is to be seen in the substantial monuments to the memory of the heroes of the first as well as of the last war.
Arlington has now in good state of preservation a con- siderable number of houses of the Colonial period.
A modest but interesting one is
THE AMOS WHITTEMORE HOUSE.
It is now numbered 209 Massachusetts Avenue, near the Soldiers' Monument.
Mr. Whittemore was, for the time, a famous inventor, a machine for making wool-cards being his greatest achieve- ment. On this he obtained a patent. Proposals for its renewal came in the time of John Randolph, who said, " Renew it forever, for it is the only machine with a soul." Till recent repairs were made, the old house bore the marks of British bullets.
36
Arlington.
THE MOLLY CUTTER HOUSE.
For some unknown reason the British manifested particu- lar disfavor toward this house, as they plundered it of a year's supply of candles and built a fire in one of its closets. It is now numbered 333 Massachusetts Avenue, and is next to the Universalist Church.
At 312 Massachusetts Avenue is an old house that claims to have been built prior to 1776. The bakery business seems to have been carried on here from the first.
THE SAMUEL RUSSELL HOUSE.
This quaint house was built by the grandfather of an old lady now living in it at the age of eighty-nine years.
It is numbered 432 Massachusetts Avenue, corner of Walnut Street. It is supposed to be more than two hundred years old.
37
Arlington.
THE ABEL LOCKE HOUSE.
1
This is a fair type of the old houses of Arlington. It is on Massachusetts Avenue, corner of Forest Street, and bears up bravely under its weight of two hundred years. Its next-door neighbor toward Lexington is the
WILLIAM LOCKE HOUSE.
Judging from its outward appearance, it must have been built at or before the time of the Abel Locke House.
38
Arlington.
THE CAPTAIN BENJAMIN LOCKE HOUSE.
Diagonally opposite the head of Forest Street, the " Old Lexington Road," now Appleton Street, leaves Massachu- setts Avenue, passing over the hill to the west, but joins it again at no great distance. The second house, No. 7 Appleton Street, bears upon its chimney the date 1775. It is the Benjamin Locke House, which was built in 1726. In 1775 it was used as a Baptist meeting-house, having been bought for the purpose for the sum of one hundred dollars. It came into the possession of the Lockes later, and is now owned by them.
Farther on over the hill there stood till within a year another old Locke house. In fact, there were standing in this vicinity, and all at one time, no less than five old houses bearing the name of Locke, as I learn from a descendant, and all of whose occupants were more or less intimately connected with the stirring events of April 19, 1775.
Arlington.
39
NEAR THIS SPOT
SAMUEL WHITTEMORE
THEN 80 YEARS OLD
KILLED THREE BRITISH SOLDIERS APRIL 19, 1775. HE WAS SHOT, BAYONETED,
BEATEN AND LEFT FOR DEAD,
BUT RECOVERED AND LIVED
TO BE 98 YEARS OF AGE.
The granite slab bearing the above inscription is on Mystic Street, in the rear of the Russell Schoolhouse.
If all the Revolutionary soldiers were of the same degree of toughness or equally tenacious of life, it is little wonder the British could not conquer them.
40
Arlington.
THE SITE OF THE
BLACK HORSE TAVERN
COMMITTEE OF SAFETY
IN 1775-
On the east side of Massachusetts Avenue, nearly opposite Linwood Street, stands a tablet with the above inscription.
HERE STOOD COOPER'S TAVERN
IN WHICH
JABEZ WYMAN
AND JASON WINSHIP
WERE KILLED BY THE BRITISH
APRIL 19, 1775.
A tablet with the above inscription is on Massachusetts Avenue, corner of Medford Street.
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Arlington.
AT THIS SPOT ON APRIL 19, 1775 THE OLD MEN OF MENOTOMY CAPTURED A CONVOY OF
EIGHTEEN SOLDIERS WITH SUPPLIES
ON ITS WAY TO JOIN
THE BRITISH AT LEXINGTON.
In front of the Unitarian Meeting-house on Massachusetts Avenue, near the center of the town, is to be seen a tablet with an inscription as above.
SITE OF THE HOME OF
JASON RUSSELL
WHERE HE AND ELEVEN OTHERS
WERE CAPTURED,
DISARMED AND KILLED
BY THE RETREATING BRITISH
ON APRIL 19, 1775.
On Massachusetts Avenue, near Jason Street, stands a stone tablet with the inscription as given above.
Lexington.
Lexington, like its sister, Concord, is so quiet and peace- ful as to give to a stranger visiting the beautiful " Village Green " the impression that its gallantry on that memorable 19th of April, 1775, had given it henceforth a right to ever- lasting tranquillity. We have heard and read of hallowed ground ! Here we see it and stand upon it, and feel like un- covering our heads as before some awe-inspiring presence.
Objects of historic interest are met on every hand. At the south end of the Common is a monument marking the site of three successive churches, the first built in 1714. Nearly opposite, on the Bedford road, stands the Buckman Tavern, from whose sides English bullets have been taken. Opposite, on the Concord road, is the house of Marrett and Nathan Monroe, built in 1729, and hence a witness of the battle. On the street north of the Green still stands the house of Jonathan Harrington with the following tablet :
HOUSE OF
JONATHAN HARRINGTON
WHO, WOUNDED ON THE COMMON APRIL 19, 1775, DRAGGED HIMSELF TO THE DOOR
AND DIED AT HIS WIFE'S FEET.
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Lexington.
Every visitor notes the granite obelisk that marks the resting-place of the men of Lexington (and one from Woburn) who fell in the battle on the Common. It is on a rise of ground on the northwestern side of the battlefield.
No British thirst of blood had they, No battle joy was theirs, who set Against the alien bayonet Their homespun breasts in that old day.
They went where duty seemed to call ; They scarcely asked the reason why; They only knew they could but die, And death was not the worst of all !
WHITTIER.
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Lexington.
LINE OF THE MLN
VITE MEN
APRIL 19
STAND YOUR GROUND DONT FIRE UNLESS FIRED UPON BUT IF THEY MEAN TO HAVE A WAR LET IT BECIN HERE
CAPTAIN PARKER
THE OLD BOWLDER.
The inscription above embodies the words of Captain John Parker, as is affirmed to be probable by the Rev. Theodore Parker, his grandson.
"This bowlder, it is estimated, weighs from twelve to fifteen tons, and was drawn to the spot from a distance of two miles by a team of ten horses. It fitly symbolizes the firm, unyielding spirit of the men whose deed it commemo- rates," says the Lexington Historical Society in their inter- esting Handbook to Lexington.
45
Lexington.
HOME OF JONATHAN HARRINGTON THE LAST SURVIVOR OF THE BATTLE OF LEXINGTON ; BORN JULY 8, 1756; DIED MARCH 27, 1854.
The house marked by the above tablet is on Massachu- setts Avenue, east side, about a mile from the Common in Lexington. "Young Harrington was the fifer boy of Cap- tain Parker's company; only sixteen at the time of the battle."
On Massachusetts Avenue, corner of Pleasant Street, is a monument with the following inscription :
NEAR THIS SPOT
AT THE EARLY DAWN OF APRIL 19, 1775, BENJAMIN WELLINGTON, A MINUTE-MAN, WAS SURPRISED BY BRITISH SCOUTS AND DISARMED. WITH UNDAUNTED COURAGE HE BORROWED A GUN AND JOINED HIS COUNTRYMEN AT LEXINGTON GREEN. HE WAS THE FIRST ARMED MAN TAKEN IN THE REVOLUTION. HE FOUGHT AT SARATOGA AND WHITE PLAINS.
46
Lexington.
Toward the Common, and not far from the Munroe Tav- ern, is a tablet with the following inscription :
ON THE HILL TO THE SOUTH
WAS PLANTED
ONE OF THE BRITISH FIELD-PIECES
APRIL 19, 1775,
TO COMMAND THE VILLAGE
AND ITS APPROACHES,
AND NEAR THIS PLACE
SEVERAL BUILDINGS WERE BURNED.
One of the noticeable monuments of Lexington is about half a mile south of the Common, on Massachusetts Avenue. It represents a mounted field-piece cut in granite, and marks the spot where Earl Percy planted one to cover the retreat of the British troops.
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Lexington.
MUNROE TAVERN.
This is a fair type of the Colonial houses of Lexington. The inscription on the tablet borne on its front is :
EARL PERCY'S HEADQUARTERS AND HOSPITAL, APRIL 19, 1775. THE MUNROE TAVERN
BUILT IN 1695.
South of this house and its next-door neighbor is the old Sanderson House. It received rough treatment at the hands of the retreating British, who added insult to injury by leaving one of their wounded to be cared for by the family on their return, they having fled at the approach of the enemy.
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Lexington.
HANCOCK-CLARK HOUSE.
This house is on Hancock Street, about a third of a mile from the Common. The "L" part was built in 1698 or 1699, by the Rev. John Hancock, the second minister, and grandfather of John Hancock, governor of Massachusetts 1780-85 and 1787-93, Governor Hancock being the first signer of the Declaration of Independence. The Rev. Jonas Clark, the fourth minister, afterward owned the house, and here his thirteen children were born, all living to become men and women. The ministries of the Rev. John Hancock and the Rev. Jonas Clark in Lexington covered a period of one hundred and five years.
John Hancock and Samuel Adams were sleeping here on the night of the 18th of April, 1775, when awakened by Paul Revere. It is a shame that this house was removed, but a matter of thankfulness that it is preserved. In the autumn of 1896 it was moved across the street, and now stands on the northeast side of Hancock Street.
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Lexington.
On Hancock Street, not far from the corner of Adams, is the Fiske House, which was at the time of the battle the home of Dr. Joseph Fiske, who became a surgeon in the Revolutionary army.
Farther on, toward Bedford, is the Lawrence House, a Colonial house, at one time occupied by the ancestors of the noted merchants, Amos and Abbott Lawrence.
All visitors to Lexington should find time to visit the Memorial Hall and Cary Library, as it contains objects of great historic interest and value. Chief among these, if we except the library of 13,000 volumes, is a painting of the battle of Lexington, by Sandham, which cost $4000.
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Lexington.
Beyond the Common, on the Concord road, and about a mile out, is a tablet with the following inscription :
AT THIS WELL APRIL 19, 1775,
JAMES HAYWARD OF ACTON MET A BRITISH SOLDIER WHO, RAISING HIS GUN, SAID : " YOU ARE A DEAD MAN." " AND SO ARE YOU," REPLIED HAYWARD.
BOTH FIRED, THE SOLDIER WAS INSTANTLY KILLED, AND HAYWARD MORTALLY WOUNDED.
Lexington.
5I
On the retreat of the British from Concord, being hard pressed by the Americans, they made a stand on a hill " a mile and a half west of the Common." Here is a granite slab with the following inscription at the foot of the hill :
THIS BLUFF
WAS USED AS A RALLYING POINT
BY THE BRITISH APRIL 19, 1775.
AFTER A SHARP FIGHT
THEY RETREATED TO FISKE HILL
FROM WHICH THEY WERE DRIVEN IN GREAT CONFUSION.
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Concord.
This town is well worth visiting and knowing from its quiet natural beauties alone; but it becomes doubly inter- esting because it has been hallowed by historical events and literary associations, - because it was the dearly beloved home of the immortals, Emerson, Hawthorne, Thoreau, and the Alcotts.
The visitor seeking for historic sites and incidents natu- rally seeks first the
7
BATTLE GROUND.
It is on Monument Street, and not far from the Old Manse. The ground on which the British fought has a monument with the following inscription :
HERE
WAS MADE THE FIRST FORCIBLE RESISTANCE TO BRITISH AGGRESSION.
ON THE OPPOSITE BANK STOOD THE AMERICAN MILITIA. HERE STOOD THE INVADING ARMY. AND ON THIS SPOT THE FIRST OF THE ENEMY FELL IN THE WAR OF THE REVOLUTION,
WHICH GAVE INDEPENDENCE TO THESE UNITED STATES. IN GRATITUDE TO GOD, AND IN THE LOVE OF FREEDOM, THIS MONUMENT WAS ERECTED, A.D. 1836.
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Concord.
THE BATTLE GROUND.
By the rude bridge that arched the flood, Their flag to April's breeze unfurled, Here once the embattled farmers stood And fired the shot heard round the world.
On this green bank, by this soft stream, We set to-day a votive stone That memory may the deed redeem When, like our sires, our sons are gone.
EMERSON.
54
Concord.
SY THE BUDE BRIDGE THAT ARCHES THE FLOOD, THEIR FLAC TO ARRIES
HERE ANCE THE EMBATTLED
FARMERS #FOOD
AND FIRED THE SHOE HEARD. ROUND THE WORLD.
THE MINUTE-MAN.
This monument, full of spirit and earnestness, was de- signed by the famous sculptor of Concord, Mr. D. C. French. It stands on the side of the river, opposite to the spot on which the British fought, and marks the ground held by the Americans during the battle or a portion of it.
On the opposite side from the minute-man a stone in the wall marks the "Grave of British Soldiers."
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Concord.
THE BRITISH TROOPS
RETREATING FROM THE OLD NORTH BRIDGE WERE HERE ATTACKED IN FLANK BY THE MEN OF CONCORD
AND NEIGHBORING TOWNS
AND DRIVEN UNDER A HOT FIRE TO CHARLESTOWN.
This tablet stands at Merriam's Corner, past which the British were retreating on the road to Lexington.
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Concord.
THE OLD MANSE.
This house stands near the battleground, and the name, " Old Manse," the Scotch name for a country parsonage, is well applied, as it was built for the Rev. William Emerson, grandfather of Ralph Waldo Emerson, in 1765, and during most of its existence has been the home of ministers.
Mosses from an Old Manse inseparably connects Haw- thorne's name with it, as he was at one time a resident of this house. It was a witness of the battle, and from one of its windows the widow of the Rev. William Emerson was a deeply interested observer of the same stirring event. All visitors to Concord should visit the Wayside, the real home of Hawthorne; the home of the Alcotts and the School of Philosophy, - all on the Lexington road, not far from Merriam's Corner ; the Concord Antiquarian Society; the Public Library; and the different cemeteries, especially
57
THE OLD MANSE.
Sleepy Hollow, and, time permitting, Walden Pond, the scene of the hermit life of a veritable child of Nature, Henry D. Thoreau.
In Sleepy Hollow the grave of Hawthorne is on the hill by Ridge Path; the grave of Thoreau is just behind; and a little farther on is the grave of R. W. Emerson, on the opposite side of Ridge Path. A great pine stands at the head of the grave, and a huge unhewn block of pink granite is his monument.
58
Concord.
THE HOME OF EMERSON.
Probably no house in Concord, whether Colonial or more recent, is so eagerly sought out by visitors to this historic old town as is the simple house of the " Sage of Concord." Emerson lived here from 1835 till the time of his death, April 27, 1882. It may be of interest to the reader to be reminded that his death occurred only about one month after he had attended the funeral of his friend, Longfellow, who died March 24, 1882.
This house stands on the old road to Lexington, about equally distant from Merriam's Corner and the center of the town.
59
Bedford.
This town was incorporated under its present name in 1729, and is composed of territory formerly belonging to Concord, Billerica, and Cambridge.
As the visitor approaches the village of Bedford from the east on the main road, he sees on the right, and near the Common,
THE FIRST PARSONAGE,
or " Dominie Manse." It was built in 1729 by the Rev. Nicholas Bowes, whose wife, Lucy, was a daughter of the Rev. John Hancock, of Lexington.
Passing along the same road, past the Common, toward Concord, a second parsonage is reached, directly opposite a meeting-house, and known as
THE STEARNS HOUSE.
It has been the home of the Rev. Samuel Stearns (for forty years a minister here) and his descendants since 1796. It has just passed out of the family. It is worthy of men- tion that four descendants of the Rev. Samuel Stearns were ministers, the Rev. William A. Stearns being at one time president of Amherst College.
The next house north and on the same side of the road is also Colonial, built in 1756, and known as
THE JEREMIAH FITCH HOUSE.
Mr. Fitch was known as the "merchant."
Having seen the homes of the minister and the merchant, we are interested to find, on the same side of the road and next-door neighbor,
60
Bedford.
THE HOUSE OF THE SQUIRE,
one Mr. Stearns, a cousin of the Rev. Samuel Stearns. No finer specimen of Colonial house is to be found in New England, though probably it was built early in the present century.
Just here the road forks, one branch leading to Concord, the other to Billerica. At the " parting of the ways " stands the " Winthrop Oak," beneath whose branches met the men of Bedford and towns near by on the morning of April 19, 1775.
Some distance out on the Billerica branch is still to be seen an old
GARRISON HOUSE.
It was from a room in the upper story of this house that a brave young woman, unable to make the soldier on guard see a lurking Indian, seized a gun and shot him herself.
From the historian of Bedford, Mr. Abram English Brown, the writer was surprised to learn that seventy-seven men of the town were in the Concord fight. Fifty-two of them lie buried in the old cemetery near the Common. This ceme- tery well repays a visit. Among other quaint and curious things to be seen here is a bowlder bearing a tablet with the following inscription :
CAMBRIDGE MOORE, CÆSAR PRESCOTT, CÆSAR JONES, NEGRO SLAVES, SOLDIERS IN THE REVOLUTION, 1775-1783.
61
Bedford.
Michael Bacon and his descendants have been among the most prominent of Bedford families since the settlement of the town.
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