USA > Massachusetts > Franklin County > Shelburne > History and tradition of Shelburne, Massachusetts > Part 9
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1869 To collect unpaid taxes
June 4, 1886 Hand pumpers Nos. 1, 2, and 3. Steam fire engine - horse-drawn 1910 Voted 130 to 91 to adopt gravity system
Oct. 11, 1911
First water turned on from Fox Brook Water to Conway St. -- temperature 19 degrees below zero
1929
1932 Pumps installed on fire trucks
1935 Purchased Reo and pump installed
1941
Purchased Chevrolet. Purchased first ladder truck. A well driven in the North River bank above Shattuck- ville and an engine-driven pump gave auxiliary water supply when the Fox Brook flow was small.
1944 Purchased fire house
1951 Purchased Dodge
1953 Purchased ladder truck
1953
Kiwanis sponsored purchase of ambu- lance. (Today complete resuscita- tor equipment.) Two-way radio communication with 44 communi- ties in Tri-State pool.
1956 Ambulance replaced by another.
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Jan. 13, 1912
Purchased Chevrolet
THE TOWER ON MT. MASSAEMET
Fire Tower, Mt. Massaemet
THE location at the top of Mt. Massaemet, 1690 feet above sea level had always attracted visitors. Young people had had fun climbing an old pine tree into which spikes had been driven to form steps, lead- ing to a vantage point at the top of the tree. Several paths led up both the West and East faces of the mountain, which were kept clean and relatively easy to use. Later a carriage road spiralled up the ascent on the West side and through the Pattern District on the East side. Carriages could also climb a con- siderable distance.
Since several wooden towers had failed to with- stand the severe windstorms, a permanent tower was suggested. To a graduate, not long out of college, the stone tower at Dartmouth College furnished the inspiration for the present stone structure. On a hilltop in Hanover, New Hampshire, stands a round stone tower, overlooking Dartmouth College and the surrounding area, a beloved rendezvous for thousands of young men and returning alumni. This monument replaced, so tradition says, the lone pine tree around which gathered certain ceremonial groups.
The spark of interest was fanned to action. A com- mittee was formed, composed of Herbert Newell, Lyman D. Bailey and Herman Sawyer. To start off the Tower fund a minstrel show was given, followed by other entertainments for several years. Contribu- tions flowed in, the largest single one being from William M. Pratt of Greenfield of five hundred dol- lars. Roy S. Merrill, local contractor, agreed to build the tower for eighteen hundred forty-five dollars, according to plans and specifications submitted by Frank Merrill, a resident of Milwaukee, who returned to his native town to live. This was in the year 1909.
To realize the difficulties of construction, one must picture a rough, stony terrain as an approach, no source of water close at hand, no sand nearer than five miles, thus necessitating trucking with four horses up the East side of the mountain. Supplies were trans- ported up the West side on the back of a horse to a log cabin built near the chosen site to house cement, tools and equipment. Workmen climbed daily with their dinner pails up the steep ascent - all native men.
Plans called for a circular tower built of native stone. Accordingly, granite was quarried nearby to build a tower sixty feet high, eight feet in diameter inside, with walls three feet thick at the base. Wooden steps originally outlined in the plan were replaced by a thoroughly fireproof cement spiral staircase at- tached to the wall, and a six-inch steel column through the center of the tower. The landings were of con- crete, reinforced with steel rods.
A year after its completion in 1909, the tower was taken over by the State as a fire lookout station and soon thereafter the observation room atop the building was enclosed with several large glass windows and a wooden dome. This work was done by the late Albert O. Davenport.
In this little room, something like the pilot house on a river steamboat, the watchman, with his map and field glasses, scans the wooded areas for tell-tale smoke signals which indicate a fire. When smoke is spotted, the location is checked on the direction-finder and information telephoned to headquarters so that with no loss of time a crew can be dispatched to the scene of the fire. As a part of the fire-fighting system of Massachusetts, the tower has, indeed, been a senti- nel. From its lookout, thousands of smoke signals have been observed and reported by a watchman who keeps ceaseless vigil seven months of the year. Thus have many serious threats to our forest been averted.
Nelson C. Woodward served as the first observer, a position he held for twenty-six years, during which time, aside from his regular duties, he entertained visitors from practically every State in the Union and from several foreign countries. Succeeding observers have been Donald G. Wood, Kendall Woods, Preston Ware and William Wall.
The tower also played a part in the late World
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War when watchers were stationed there at night as a precautionary measure and to see that no lights showed in the village during "black-out" demonstra- tions.
The tower, nearly fifty years old, shows no signs of age but looks as though it would last for centuries, a monument to its builder and to those who promoted its erection.
SHELBURNE FALLS AND THE RAILROADS
IT WAS nearly one hundred years after its incorpo- ration before Shelburne had any means of transporta- tion to and from the outside world other than the shoulder pack, the oxcart, and the horse-drawn wagon and carriage and the stagecoach. It was handicapped by its topography and was not large enough or pro- ductive enough to be made a terminus in its own right. It had to wait for the realization of a dream as old as the Erie Canal, namely - direct transpor- tation between Boston Harbor, the Great Lakes and the Mid-west.
The major obstacle to the fulfillment of this dream was, of course, the Berkshire Hills. One of the most feasible routes was by way of Greenfield and the Deerfield River Valley. Various methods were con- sidered, including the fantastic one of a canal, which would pass through a tunnel under Hoosac Mountain and use the waters of the Deerfield River for locks. A preliminary survey for such a tunnel was made in 1828. The advent of railroads offered a better prospect, but the tunnel would still be needed. The plans for it, however, gathered dust and ridicule for many years.
Greenfield was given railroad connection with Bos- ton in 1846 by a branch line running up from Spring- field, and more directly by way of Gardner and Fitch- burg in 1851. In anticipation of this latter line the Troy and Greenfield Railroad was chartered in 1848, beginning a long period of disappointments and trou- bles. Work did not begin on the eastern end of this line until 1855. Engineering problems were not the only difficulties. The Civil War slowed the progress. Financial inadequacy and irregularities slowed it still more and even stopped it for two years. The Com- monwealth itself took over after an investigation. The road finally reached Shelburne Falls in 1867 - eleven miles having been built in twelve years. After that, progress was more satisfactory, and the road reached the eastern portal of the partly completed tunnel three years later. Trains were operated to this portal for the next five years; passengers were transported over Hoosac Mountain by stagecoach to trains coming east to the western portal. The tunnel was opened for traffic in 1875 and the long-time dream came true.
The formal opening of the line to Shelburne Falls was an event. A train of eleven cars, gaily decorated, brought the Governor of the Commonwealth, Alexan- der H. Bullock, with his Council, and a large group of State and railroad officials. These dignitaries, together with local town officers, the Shelburne Falls Military Band, and the fire department, formed a parade. A luncheon was served in a huge tent erected
near the Franklin Academy building, and a program of speeches was conducted there in the afternoon. It was estimated that a thousand people attended, and that in spite of a cold November drizzle, over three thousand watched the parade. In the course of the program it was announced that passenger depots and freight sheds would be erected at the Falls and at Bardwell's Ferry, and also a turntable at the Falls.
The name "Troy and Greenfield," like that of many other short roads, has long since disappeared. The line was taken over by the Boston and Maine system and is its trunk route to the West.
As this is being written, much of the business for- merly carried by the railroad is now handled by auto- mobiles and trucks. This is true of all railroads, and many small lines and branch railroads have been discontinued; but Shelburne is fortunate in being on a trunk line.
Another railroad served Shelburne and Shelburne Falls for a time. One of the components of what is now the New Haven system built several branch lines from its Northampton-Greenfield tracks, one of them coming to Shelburne Falls. It operated a passenger train which left the Falls at eight in the morning and returned at six or seven in the evening. This was convenient for those who had shopping or other busi- ness in Northampton or Springfield, and there was freight service; but the Boston and Maine got most of the business, and the branch was discontinued in 1910.
Edwin Stratton was a civil engineer in the con- struction of Hoosac Tunnel, residing on Masonic Avenue at that time, and it has been said that he had the distinction of being the first man to go through the big tunnel. William Burke was an engineer on N. Y., N. H. & H. R. R. S. C. Ainsworth was an engineer on Fitchburg R. R. F. R. Smith was a conductor on the former railroad, also Alden Todd. Edwin Moore was a conductor on the latter railroad. George T. Wiswell was a contractor for the railroad.
No history of the town would be complete without mention of one of its disasters. On the night of April 7, 1886, an east-bound passenger train was derailed a short distance below the Bardwell's Ferry station, near where the South River joins the Deer- field. The train rolled down the bank of the river and the coaches, being of wood, caught fire. Eleven people were killed and thirty injured.
Stories of heroism usually arise from tragedies of this type and two are connected with this one which seem credible and worthy of mention. The engineer, Herbert F. Littlejohn of North Adams, was pinned in the wreck of his cab, but when the conductor tried
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to release him, he refused all help, and told the con- ductor to flag the tracks and supervise the rescue of the passengers. Also, a Henry Couillard of Charle- mont, who was being taken to Greenfield by a deputy to answer in court for some minor violation of the
law, begged to be released so that he could help in the rescue work. The deputy agreed and Couillard really furnished valuable assistance. He made no attempt to escape, and the court, on the deputy's recommendation, rewarded him with a release.
THE SHELBURNE FALLS . COLRAIN TROLLEY
THIS local enterprise was an important factor in the life of these two communities for a quarter of a century. In this it followed the example of other towns in the vicinity of linking themselves by trolley - Greenfield, Turners Falls, and Conway being the nearest. It was incorporated by local men; most of the stock was owned by a long list of people in Shel- burne, Buckland and Colrain, and it served well the business and social life of those towns.
The incorporators and directors of the company were David W. Temple, Charles A. Marcy, Herbert Newell, Albert J. Amstein, Edwin Baker, Albert A. Bray, Whiting W. Carey, Freeman L. Davenport, Clifton O. Field, Lorenzo Griswold, George W. Jenks and Hugo Mann. The three mentioned first were elected President, Vice President and Treasurer-clerk respectively.
They incorporated in 1896 and laid out the line, much of it along the North River, during the next year and a half. The Frankton Mill water privileges were purchased and its dam repaired to furnish power. Later, land and more water rights were purchased in Whitingham and Searsburg, Vermont. The tracks stopped on the Shelburne side of the river, and for the first ten years freight and express had to be hauled in wagons to and from the railroad. The car barn and office were located on Deerfield Avenue, but the office was later moved to Water Street.
The need increased for a bridge across the river to give the road access to the railroad station. In 1907 preliminary plans were made for a concrete arch bridge, as the highway bridge could not be widened and strengthened enough for the cars. At first no contractor seemed to care to bid on the work, but Herbert P. Ware, who was then employed by the Fred T. Ley Co. of Springfield, induced his company to make a bid for the contract - the only one sub- mitted. The bridge was completed the following year.
This bridge was located just above, and almost parallel to, the iron highway bridge. It consisted of four piers and five arches and was three hundred
and ninety-eight feet long - at that time one of the longest concrete bridges in the eastern part of the country. The tracks were then extended up to the railroad. This was a great help to the mills and stores in Colrain for the rails were heavy enough and gauged properly for railroad freight cars.
Passenger traffic consisted largely of people from Colrain who came down for shopping or for train connections, and school pupils. Also, in the summer, the ride was popular in both towns for the pleasure of it; the company owned two open cars, the scenery was pleasant and the low fare (fifteen cents) was an attraction.
At the height of the prosperity of the road, many gatherings were held at "Hillside Park" at the end of the bridge in Shattuckville - among them Sunday School, Grange and family picnics, all-day affairs with old and young participating in games, quiet visiting under the trees, baseball in the afternoon, and strolls about the wooded hill. For these occasions famous cooks vied with each other, pressing on one group after another wonderful offerings of food from their baskets. For a five-cent fare this lovely area could be reached by anyone from the "Falls" and proved a splendid recreation ground.
In the early Twenties the road became less pros- perous. The Frankton plant had deteriorated, and electricity had to be purchased from the New England Power Company. Trucks and private automobiles were taking increased amounts of the business, and some stretches of track would soon have to be relo- cated to make room for a state highway. Consequently, the company voted, in 1927, to discontinue operation, and the bondholders took over. The rails and equip- ment were sold to J. M. Blassberg for junk. The concrete bridge was too narrow for ordinary purposes, but since it carried the water main to the Buckland side of the village, it was bought by the Fire District for twelve hundred and fifty dollars. The highly original and distinctive use to which the bridge is now being put is dealt with in another section of this book.
TELEPHONE
THE Heath Telephone Company originated in Heath, Massachusetts, extending their lines into Col- rain and in 1901 into Shelburne. The central office was located on the second floor of the Stebbins Block. About 1916 the business had outgrown this location and was moved into the Ott-Hosley Block on the west side. After a few years more room was required
and the office was moved to the second floor of the Newell Block in Buckland. Finally the business was sold to the New England Telephone Co. and is now operated on the dial system. A small and attractive brick building on Cross Street houses the mechanism and electrical equipment and the main office is in Greenfield.
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LIGHT AND POWER
PREVIOUS to the use of electricity, Shelburne was lighted at night by kerosene lamps, there being several lamp posts on each street. Lewis T. Covell was the "Old Lamp Lighter." He would make the rounds in the morning, filling up the tanks and cleaning the wicks and at dusk would light the lamps.
The Shelburne Falls Electric Light Co. was estab- lished by E. J. Halligan and Charles Wilcox in 1897. The small plant was west of H. H. Mayhew Co., using water power from the Deerfield River.
In 1908 the owners decided to operate by steam power so they erected the brick building south of the Thayer Block. In 1911 they sold to the Greenfield Electric Light and Power Co. This plant was dis- continued. A dam and power plant were erected at Gardner Falls about a mile below the town, which now furnish electric power for Shelburne and neigh- boring towns under the ownership of the Western Massachusetts Electric Company.
HEALTH CONDITIONS
THE subject of Public Health, as such, can be easily taken care of, for the town of Shelburne has on the whole been a healthful community. It has been stated that because of the purity of the water, the State at one time planned to locate a sanatorium on the west slope of Mt. Massaemet near the village of Shelburne Falls. Why the project was abandoned no one seems to know.
There have been a few epidemics. Rev. Theophilus Packard in his historical address mentions that in the summer of 1777 a form of putrid, malignant dysentery swept over the town with dreadful fatality especially among children. A French doctor (name unknown) came to help, but remained only three days. Dr. Long came home from the army and stayed for some time, doing what he could to help. Sixty-five died in fifty-three days. Dysentery appeared again in 1802 and this time was fatal to seventy people.
In 1803 spotted fever appeared and at first seemed to baffle all attempts to check it. Tradition has it that the then president of Williams College finally furnished a remedy.
In 1914 typhus fever had a short run that proved fatal to thirty persons.
Probably the worst outbreaks of disease since those dates were the influenza during the years 1918-1919, and the two of infantile paralysis, in the early 1900's and in 1946 respectively.
From the Public Documents Vital Statistics for 1918 and 1919 we find there were twelve deaths from influenza during the epidemic, eleven men and one woman, on the Shelburne side of the river. Mrs. Adler remembers that nearly every family in all the village had one or more cases of influenza at that time. She also recalls the remarkable work of Dr. John B. Temple as the only doctor in town during the years of World War II.
In the early days here, as in all rural districts, doc- tors were seldom called except in cases of emergency and severe accidents. Nearly all families had a well- stocked upper shelf of home remedies in their pantries, and if the case was one that put the patient in bed, kindly neighbors helped out or sometimes one was hired to act as housekeeper and care for the invalid.
Nowadays she would be known as a practical nurse. Then they had no trained or registered nurses.
From the records of The Neighbors, June 26, 1873: "A committee was appointed to see the Selectmen in regard to appointing a Board of Health, or to take other measures to prevent the yearly return of malarian fevers, typhoid, scarlet fever and other epidemics - known to be generated by neglected drains, sewers and outhouses." Mrs. Catherine Pratt, Mrs. Lucretia Ball, Mrs. Frances L. Gardner, were appointed on this committee.
SEWAGE DISPOSAL
The history of a small town is often representative of the history of the growth of the country.
In war or peace we think and act together and adopt improvements and adjust ourselves to the neces- sities of modern life. Telephones connected homes, transportation came into use for groups, and drains and sewers were planned to accommodate groups. As horse-drawn cars gave way to power on streets, water and rails, - so improvements in indoor sanitation demanded installation of modern plumbing in bath- rooms and kitchens, creating the need for a better drainage system.
The Mechanic Street Brook had always been a source of danger to public health in times of flood by overflowing into Mechanic and Main Streets. In dry weather, also, it was a menace since drains from many houses were connected with it.
Consequently in the early Nineties a start was made toward a comprehensive plan for a sewer. The first construction started near the old lockup near Swan's, going up Main Street to the Universalist Church, then across to Mechanic Street, thence north up this street. Later, branches were added to River Street, Church and Grove Streets and Main Street was brought in. Bridge and Maple Streets were later connected. A fee was charged and all were compelled to join. Most of the system which lacks a little in co-ordination has given service for sixty-five years. Davis Brothers, Avery, and G. F. Merrill were some of the engineers employed, using the best available
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information as to construction. The work is not yet complete as sewage disposal treatment may be required by State legislation in the near future.
DISTRICT NURSING
In the year 1917 a dozen or more active citizens of the village formed a District Nurse Association for the two towns and Mrs. Alma Adler was appointed the first district nurse. Funds to carry on the work were solicited by the association until 1922 when the town appropriated eight hundred dollars ($800) and the Board of Health took over the management. appointing the district nurse and school physician. The system was again reorganized in 1952, and is now the Buckland-Shelburne Public Health Board, including the Selectmen from both towns as a unit, with one district nurse, one school physician and a school nurse.
Mrs. Adler did the work as both district and school nurse until 1920. MIrs. Bertha Koenig had it for a time. Miss Florence Tyler had the job until the latter part of 1924 when MIrs. Adler was again appointed and with the assistance of Mrs. Mary Stone, Mrs. Ella Trow Walker, Mrs. Louise Shaw and Mrs. Ruth Canedy Anderson, at various times in the order men- tioned, held the position for thirty years, retiring in 1950 from both school and district work.
Then, Mrs. Anderson was district nurse until 1952. followed by the appointment of Mrs. Eloise Bardwell Tracy as district nurse, with Mrs. Hazel Ormond assistant of the district and Mrs. Anderson as school nurse. Since 1953 Mrs. Ormond has been the district nurse with the assistance of the school nurse Mrs. Glenna Cutting.
DENTISTS AND DRUGGISTS
For many years the doctors took care of the teeth as well as other bodily ailments, but finally specialists in dentistry began to appear. The following is, at least, a partial list of such dentists: Dr. Bissell, Dr. Morse, Dr. Stebbins, Dr. Perry, Dr. Collins, Dr. Thayer, Dr. Marshman, Dr. Tower, Dr. Nason, Dr. Payne, Dr. Clapp, Dr. Goodell and Dr. Rush.
In the early days there were few drugstores and consequently all doctors carried with them an assort- ment of remedies.
Just before the Civil War, Dr. A. H. Taylor
opened a place to dispense drugs in connection with his office, which was at the corner of what is now Baker Avenue and Bridge Street. This location has been a pharmacy ever since. Shortly after the Civil War, in 1867, Dr. Taylor sold out to Mr. Edwin Baker, who established The Baker Pharmacy, and ran the place for many years. His wife, Emma Banister Baker, was the first woman to be a registered pharmacist in Massachusetts. In 1920 Mr. Baker sold to Eugene W. Benjamin, who in turn sold to Harold E. Crosier in 1942. Charles A. Canedy bought the business in August, 1955, having been employed there since 1910. The Baker Pharmacy is the only place where Mr. Crosier and Mr. Canedy have worked. Mr. Crosier began work there for Mr. Baker in 1905, and Mr. Canedy went there just out of high school.
At the northwest corner of Bridge and Water Streets there was a drugstore under various owners. At times it was owned and run by Mr. John Hoyt, Mr. Bert Miller, and Mr. Fred Banister. Mr. Joel Thayer had a country store in the building just east of the present Post Office. He finally turned the east side of it into a drug department, which at different times was run by Mr. Goodwin, Mr. Ashmon, and Mr. Wiswell. Later it was taken over by Mr. W. C. Thompson, who later became proprietor and used the whole store for drugs and allied lines. Mr. Thompson finally sold to Mr. A. H. March, who, in 1947, sold to Paul Doneilo. At Mr. Doneilo's death, Mr. March ran the store until it was purchased from the estate by Mr. A. B. Vezina, who sold it in 1947 to Raymond Fournier, the present proprietor. Both Mr. Ashmon and Mr. Wiswell opened stores after severing their connection with Mr. Thayer, but neither venture lasted very long.
NOTE: Information about the dentists here men- tioned and others who may possibly have practiced here is inadequate or entirely missing. The information about doctors is so much more plentiful and satisfactory that it forms a complete chapter later in this book. For it, we are deeply indebted to Dr. Lawrence R. Dame of Greenfield who generously extracted it from the work he is compiling on the medical history of Franklin County.
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