USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Peabody > History Of Peabody Massachusetts > Part 8
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
1019
PEABODY.
means of the wealthy. The old simplicity and uni- formity of social life and customs passed away never to return, and in its place began to grow up the more complex relations of town life resulting from greater variety of employment and greater differences in for- tune, and in part from the mere increase of num- bers. .
EDUCATION .- From the earliest years the Middle Precinct was careful and earnest in the cause of edu- cation. Soon after the separation of the precinct the parish gave its attention to the support of schools, and claimed and received from the town its proper part of the school money. We find the school fund a com- mon subject of discussion in the parish meeting, and the people themselves contributed liberally from their slender means toward the schools. In 1734 the parish raised £47 4s. 11d. for its schools. In 1737 there were four schools in the parish, and six male teachers and ten female teachers were employed dur- ing the summer; the men received two pounds a month, and the women sixpence each week. In 1739 a grammar school, where Latin should be taught, was projected. In 1748 a school house was built near Procter's corner, eighteen by twenty-two feet. In 1765 it was voted to build a school-house on the land belonging to the parish. A school was kept six months in each parish that year. In 1783, when Revolutionary troubles had subsided, the condition of the schools received renewed attention. Com- plaint was made against Danvers for neglecting to sustain a proper number of schools, and means were taken to remedy the neglect. In 1793 Dr. Archelaus Putnam made a report to the town on the reorgani- zation of the schools. In 1793 and 1794 an effort was made to divide the town into districts, and a di- vision was made pursuant to a plan proposed by Gideon Foster, Samuel Page and John Kettelle. In 1802 the districts were remodeled at the suggestion of Sylvester Osborn.
According to the plan then in force, the general supervision over all the schools was retained by the town ; but in 1809, the modern system of school dis- tricts was established, with nine districts in the whole town. This continued up to the time of the separa- tion of South Danvers, the number of districts having been increased.
The development of the highly organized public schools of the present time from the old district school in which all were in the same room was grad- ual, and can only be traced by observing the increase of numbers and the systematization of methods and growth of text-books which accompanied the group- ing of several schools in graded association. The town kept well abreast of the improvements in other places. In 1814 an order was adopted requiring an annual report of the condition of the schools to be made to the town. This was in advance of the same regulation afterward made by the State, as was also the taking of the census of school children, in-
stituted in Danvers in 1820. These reports began to be printed in 1839.
High schools were established in 1850, and in 1852 a system of superintendence was established, which did not long continue.
The character of the instruction given and the standard of work performed in the various schools have been maintained at a high degree of excellence, and the town always displayed a spirit of liberality and progress in educational affairs which accorded with the principles of its earliest settlers. Mr. Proc- tor, in his address at the centennial celebration, in 1852, called attention to the fact that Danvers expended forty per cent. of all its outlay of public money on its schools, paying, in 1855, ten thousand dollars for support of public schools, on a valuation of three million dollars. Among the teachers of Dan- vers were some whose names have become widely known. Daniel Eppes, in the early times of the town, was a famous teacher. In 1836 Charles Northend, the well-known writer on educational mat- ters, began to teach school in the town, in a school- house close by the old burying-ground ; hetaught about twenty years in the South Parish, and was the first superintendent of schools in the town.
NEWSPAPERS .- The Danvers Eagle was published for about a year, beginning in 1844. The Danvers Whig, a political sheet, was published during the Presidential campaign in 1844.
The Danvers Courier, edited by George R. Carlton, was established in March, 1845. It continued to be published till September, 1849.
TEMPERANCE MOVEMENTS .- In 1812, when the first temperance society in America was formed, -" The Massachusetts Society for the Suppression of Intemperance,"-Joseph Torrey, Samuel Holten and Benjamin Wadsworth, from Danvers, were members. Edward Southwick and Deacon Fitch Poole, from the South Parish, were among the pioneers in tem- perance reform. A strong impulse was given to the movement by the adhesion of many of the leading citizens of the place. The principle of total absti- nence was upheld by these earliest supporters of the movement. The Danvers Moral Society, for the sup- pression of intemperance, was formed in February, 1814. The language of the Constitution was mod- erate, being directed against " the daily use of ardent spirits." Rev. Samuel Walker, Fitch Poole, Dr. An- drew Nichols, Sylvester Osborne, James Osborne, William Sutton and others, from the South Parish, were prominent in the formation of the society. In 1833 the word " daily " was stricken from the article of the Constitution above referred to. Some of the pledges formerly circulated were very moderate in form. It is said that one which was extensively cir- culated bound the signer to an agreement " to use in- toxicating liquor with cautious prudence." In 1818 the thanks of the town were voted to the selectmen for their zeal in endeavoring to prevent a portion of
-
1020
HISTORY OF ESSEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
the people from wasting " health, time and estate in drinking;" and they were earnestly requested to continue their efforts.
In 1818 Dr. Andrew Nichols delivered an address entitled Temperance and Morality.
In 1827 a committee of nine was raised to prose- cute all licensed persons who infringed the laws, and all unlicensed persons who sold ardent spirits. Dr. Ebenezer Hunt this year delivered the first public address in Danvers advocating total abstinence.
In 1831 the overseers of the poor were forbidden to furnish alcohol to the town poor, except by order of a physician. On March 4, 1833, Danvers refused to grant licenses for the sale of liquor; Mr. Proctor claimed that she was the first town to take such ac- tion, and it is certain that she was among the first. This policy was adhered to until the separation of South Danvers in 1855.
The peculiarities of the boundary line between the South Parish and Salem made it easy for those living near the line to obtain liquor, it being necessary only to cross the street in many places to be free from the restrictions of "no license."
In 1837 resolutions were unanimously adopted by the town, on motion of John W. Proctor, calling the attention of the Salem authorities to the objectiona- ble character of these border dram shops. The change of line in 1856 did much to obviate this evil; and very lately the city of Salem, in putting in force the plan of restricted area for the granting of licenses, has removed all cause for complaint in this respect, so far as official action is concerned.
SLAVERY .- At the time of the separation of Dan- vers from Salem there were within the limits of the town twenty-five slaves -- nine men and sixteen women. Slaves continued to be held until the adoption of the Constitution in Massachusetts in 1789. Most of those who were thus freed remained in the service of their former owners. The last survivor of the slaves of Danvers died in extreme old age in the South Dan- vers Almshouse in 1863,-Sibyl Swinerton, once a slave of John Swinerton.
A strong anti-slavery feeling grew up in Danvers in the early part of the century. In 1819 citizens of the town addressed a communication to the Hon. Nathaniel Silsbee, in which their attitude as opposed to slavery is forcibly presented, and the hope ex- pressed "that every practical exertion will be made, to hasten the time when the republic shall witness the complete emancipation of the African," and that " ere long this infernal traffic in human flesh will be completely and entirely abolished." This letter was signed, among others, by Edward Southwick, Wil- liam Sutton, Andrew Nichols and John W. Proctor, from the South Parish.
In 1847 a resolve, drafted by Mr. Proctor, relating to the Mexican War, was unanimously adopted, in which it was declared "that the town would not in any manner countenance anything that shall have a
tendency to extend that most disgraceful feature of our institutions,-domestic slavery."
Anti-slavery meetings were held, and many of the citizens were prominent workers in the early days of the abolition movement.
THE OLD-TIME TAVERNS .- In the old days before the time of railroads the various taverns were impor- tant centres of interest. There strangers visiting the town on business made their headquarters; there the news of the day was received from the passing stage, or repeated by the traveller from a distance, and ea- gerly discussed by the politicians of the parish ; there public events were celebrated, and meetings were held of organizations and patriotic citizens. Of these the Bell tavern, which stood for many years on Eagle corner, now the southeast corner of Main and Wash- ington Streets, at the bend of the old Boston road, was one of the most famous. Here, in the south room, on election days and other occasions of privi- leged merrymaking, the dance was led by the fiddle, and in the days before temperance was agitated as a special virtue, the convivial bowl flowed freely. Even the officers of the town sometimes consulted here over stimulating refreshment or entertained visitors of im- portance with the moist hospitality of the times.
In the days before the Revolution, the time of the spring election, beginning on the last Wednesday in May, was recognized by custom as a sort of jubilee of the colored people, and was celebrated by them with great festivities, in which they were allowed consider- able license in the way of sports and entertainment. The Bell tavern was one of the localities where the merrymakers gathered. This festival, known tradi- tionally as "Nigger 'lection," was continued by roys- tering young people among the natives long after the colored people had become few and far between, and did not wholly cease to be observed till after the spring elections were abolished.
To quote from an article on the Bell tavern by Fitch Poole:
"The loyal neighbors here collected to mourn the demise of the good Queen Anne, and rejoice in the accession of the first George. His de- parture and the rise of his son, George IT, were here celebrated in the same bowl of punch. George III was also welcomed with a zeal that was only equalled by that with which they drank confusion to his min- isters. The odious Stamp Act and all Parliament taxes on the colonies were patriotically denounced. Tea was proscribed and its sale forbidden under penalty of a ride on a rail and the brand of toryism. One con- viction only took place, and the unlucky wight obtained a reprieve from his sentence by furnishing the villagers with a bucket of punch. His neighbors kindly gave him a share of the beverage, obliging him to repeat over his cup three times the following elegant couplet :
"*I, Isaac Wilson, a tory I be; I, Isaac Wilson, I sells tea.'"
Francis Symonds, one of the hosts of early times, displayed a wooden bell as a sign, and he informed the people of his good cheer by the following strain :
" Francis Symonds makes and sells The best of chocolate ; also shells- I'll toll you in if you have need And feed you well, and bid you speed."
1021
PEABODY.
There was a printing office in the building, in which were printed the earliest news letters of the town. One of these, which has been preserved, issu- ed September 27, 1777, contains news of the Revolu- tionary battle at Stillwater. Among the other works known to have been published here are Amos Pope's Almanacs, "A Price current for Wenham," and " An account of the captivity and sufferings of Elizabeth Hanson, wife of John Hanson, who was taken pris- oner by the Indians," published in 1780. Mr. Rus- sell, the printer, afterward removed to Boston.
It was at the Bell tavern that the heroine of the novel, "Eliza Wharton, or the Coquette,"-a work almost forgotten, but of great interest to a former generation-spent her last days and gathered about the tragie ending of her unfortunate life a veil of mystery and romance which long gave her a place among the memories of the simple and kindly villa- gers. Here was the appointed rallying place of the minute-men of the Revolution, and from this corner they started out across the fields on their hurried march to Lexington. Here the regiment commanded by Col. Timothy Pickering halted for refreshment on the way to Bunker Hill. Up to 1815 there were few houses in the immediate vicinity, and the road was separated from the open fields by a low stone wall.
Even on Sundays the inn retained its hospitable appearance, for the farmers from the outskirts of the town dismounted there and walked to the meeting house.
Southwick's tavern, on the Reading road, was also a well-known baiting place in the old days of turn- pike and post-roads, and in later years the Essex Coffee House, kept by Benjamin Goodridge, on the corner of Foster Street near the square, was a favor- ite resort. Oliver Saunders kept a tavern on Main Street, near Washington Street.
Dustin's Hotel, sometimes called the Sun Tavern from the sign of a blazing sun which formally hung on a post before the door, was built in 1825, on the square, where it still stands. It was occupied as an inn or hotel for about sixty years; at present it is used for stores and other purposes, the post-office be- ing located in a portion of the building.
As time went on, the decaying commerce of Salem made trading journeys to Salem and its vicinity from the interior more rare, and the new era of railroads left the old taverns empty and deserted, and the hos- telries were useful only for local convenience. The Bell tavern was taken down about 1840, and a build- ing containing stores was built on the site, which was removed about twenty years ago to make room for an ornamental grass plot. The old South room of the Bell Tavern is still in existence as a dwelling. The Southwick tavern became a private dwelling, and the Essex Coffee House was burned in the great fire of 1843. Other places of refreshment and accommoda- tion for travellers have been built and occupied by the town, but the age of historic taverns has passed away.
THE POOR .--- ALMSHOUSE .- Throughout the whole town of Danvers, a liberal and enlightened spirit has always been manifested toward the poor, and there is no place where the unfortunate are regarded with more sympathy and kindness.
Previous to 1808, the town owned a building for its poor, with part of the Gardner estate on Central Street. In that year a farm and buildings were pro- cured of Nathaniel Nurse for seven thousand dollars for the use of the poor.
The present Almshouse, built in the South parish in 1844, at a cost of about thirteen thousand dollars, is a commodious and cheerful house, situated in a pleasant farming district. Beside the Poor-House and Hospital, there are over two hundred acres of land belonging to the farm, the value of the whole establishment at the time of the erection of the build- ing being about twenty-four thousand dollars.
Miss D. Dix, of Boston, took a deep interest in promoting the action of the town toward establishing this institution. It has been carefully and humanely conducted, and its inmates find many comforts in their simple life on this quiet farm. It was stated by the orator of the centennial celebration of the town that in fifty years of the history of the poor depart- ment of the town, a careful analysis showed that at least three-fourths of those who had received relief at the hands of the town had been brought to that necessity by reason of intemperance, notwithstanding the unremitting efforts of the town to protect its in- habitants, to the extent of the law, from the devas- tations of this debasing vice.
THE FEMALE BENEVOLENT SOCIETY .- During the earlier part of the period in question there were few very poor persons in the parish. In 1814, at a time when there was unusual distress among the poor owing to the high prices of the materials of clothing and the general stagnation of business caused by the war with Great Britain, the Danvers Female Be- nevolent Society was formed ; the first two clauses of its original constitution read as follows :
"Sensible of our obligations to imitate our blessed Saviour, and prompted by a desire to promote the comfort and happiness of the poor, the subscribers have agreed to associate together. The principal object of this association shall be to provide suitable articles of clothing, for those who are unable to provide for themselves."
The Society at once commanded the support of the charitably inclined, and it was enabled at the outset, by means of liberal contributions made to it of second-hand clothing and money, to relieve much of the destitution of that period. Its original members, forty-eight in number, were all connected with the South Church, that being then the only religious or- ganization in the parish. The society has since drawn its forces from all the Protestant societies, and has served as a means of uniting the various denomi- nations in practical Christian work. It is still in vi- gorous life, and its public meetings and entertain- ments, while serving to increase its funds for chari-
1022
HISTORY OF ESSEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
table purposes, have for many years been a promi- nent feature of the social life of the place.
Until 1831, the work of the society was confined exclusively to distributing clothing among the poor. Since that time, its means have enabled the managers to make occasional gifts of money to worthy benefi- ciaries, but its main work continues the same, and throughout all the years of its history, there has been no period of inactivity, but every year has been wit- ness to its clothing the poor and relieving misery and destitution. A careful organization of its methods was long ago effected, and a wise discrimination is shown in its bestowal of charity. It cares mainly for those who would receive aid from no other source, or for such wants as cannot be supplied by the poor department of the town or the funds of the various churches. Its work does not interfere with that of any other organization. For these reasons, it is likely to continue to receive the merited support of the ci- tizens of Peabody.
The society has been favored with several bequests and donations from friends and from members.
MILITARY COMPANIES,-Much interest was taken in military matters, and at the time of the War of 1812 there were three companies in Danvers, the Artillery, the Militia company of Infantry and a company of Exempts, composed of volunteers from th se exempted from military duty. This last was commanded by the veteran General Foster. The Artil- lery company was under command of Capt., after- ward Col. Jesse Putnam, who lived almost to see the next war, dying in 1860. David Foster was first lieutenant and Benjamin Goodridge second lieuten- ant. Lewis Allen, afterward a prominent citizen of Peabody, who lived to an advanced age, was one of the youngest of the company. The uniform of the Danvers Artillery consisted of a chapeau bras cap, with a long white plume, tipped with red, a long skirted red coat with white trimmings, white waist- coat, buff breeches, buckled at the knees, and long boots. They each wore a sword in a belt over the shoulder, and each soldier had his hair powdered. As it was then the fashion to wear a queue hanging down over the coat collar, the latter was whitened by the powder. The cut of the coat was such as is rep- resented as worn by officers in the Revolution.
The Militia company of Infantry was commanded at that time by Capt. Daniel Preston. Robert S. Daniels was a lieutenant. The meeting-place of the company in time of alarm was the green,-then really a green,-in front of the Old South Meeting- House.
The Danvers Light Infantry, a military organiza- tion of high repute in its time, was organized in 1818, its first officers being Robert S. Daniels, cap- tain; Abner Sanger, lieutenant; Allen Gould, en- sign. There were originally forty-eight members, chiefly from the South Parish. The uniform con- sisted of a blue " swallow-tail " coat, with gold but-
tons, white or buff waistcoat and pantaloons, and a high stiff cap, larger at the top, adorned with gold trimming and a tall plume. At one time, helmets were worn by the company.
The armory of the company was for many years a building standing at the end of Cabbage Lane (now Holten Street), at a point near where Sewall Street now intersects Holten Street.
A spirited representation of an encampment of the Danvers Light Infantry in 1826, on the green in front of the Old South Meeting-House, painted by Gideon Foster, the son of General Foster, was for many years in the possession of Gen. Wm. Sutton, and was pre- sented by his son, Gen. Eben Sutton, to the town. It now hangs in the selectmen's room, in the Town House. This very interesting picture gives an ex- cellent idea of the uniform and individual appear- ance of the members of the corps, and it contains also the best representation known of the original meeting-house, with its three rows of windows and its western tower and belfry. The district school- house, near the meeting-house, whose position after- ward gave rise to some litigation between the society and the town as to the ownership of the land on which it stood, is seen in the painting, and also the Sun Tavern, then recently built, with its sign, and Gardner's Bridge, at the head of the mill-pond. A sight of this picture carries one back to the old days of the town, and helps one to realize the extent of the changes that have been wrought in the physical aspect as well as the social characteristics of the place.
The Danvers Light Infantry continued as an ac- tive organization till about 1850.
On the 10th of September, 1862, the past and present members of this veteran company were called together to do escort duty to a company of volunteers for the War of the Rebellion, led by Capt. Robert S. Daniels, Jr., a son of the first captain of the old company. On a very brief notice, over a hundred of the past members gathered together, including six- teen of the original forty-eight. Capt. Robert S. Daniels, the first commander, led the parade, and Gen. Wm. Sutton acted as lieutenant, and other well-known citizens were chosen to fill the various offices. Abner Sanger and Ralph Emerson, of the early officers, rode with the veterans of 1812, and the procession attracted great notice as it passed from the Square to the Eastern Railroad Station in Salem, ac- companied by a large number of the citizens, with fire companies and other organizations in line. This was the last appearance of the Danvers Light Infan- try, and probably not one of the original members now survives.
AQUEDUCT WATER .- The South Parish was one of the earliest communities in the State to enjoy the privileges of water conveyed by aqueduct. The Salem and Danvers Aqueduct Company, incorporated March 9, 1797, with a capital of ten thousand dollars, sup-
1023
PEABODY.
plied water from a group of natural springs near Spring Pond. The first primitive reservoir consisted of a large hogshead sunk in the ground, from which wooden logs of three inch bore conducted the water through Danvers to Salem. William Gray, the famous merchant of Salem, was the first president of the company. The operations of the company were gradually extended as the demand for water in- creased; the wooden logs were replaced by others; in 1834 an iron-pipe was laid, in 1850 a twelve inch iron-pipe was laid directly to Salem, and in 1867 an iron and cement pipe sixteen inches in bore was laid. The reservoir was several times increased, and about 1850 a stone reservoir was built, with a capacity of six hundred and fifty-two thousand gallons. In 1850 a connection was made with Spring Pond, a sheet of water covering fifty-nine acres, and whose surface is about sixty-four feet above mean high-water, and a filtering box was placed in the pond. This pond is fed by natural springs, and is of great depth. The water is very pure; an early analysis of the supply from the springs showed in ten thousand pounds of water only 1886 of a pound of solid foreign matter, consisting of silicious earth, sulphate of soda and common salt, the salts constituting about one-half of the solid matter. A sample of the water sealed up with a piece of lead for many years did not percepti- bly affect the lead, such was its purity and freedom from corrosive qualities. The water of Spring Pond is about equally pure.
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.