USA > Massachusetts > Suffolk County > Boston > History of Boston > 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
6. Governor Winthrop invited him at the time to a colla- tion. He behaved with much propriety, and refused to eat till the governor had given thanks. After finishing his re- past, he again requested him to give thanks, and retired.
7. In this respect, he conducted himself much better than
Governor Winthrop and the Indian Chief.
29
HISTORY OF BOSTON.
some of his brother Indians, who visited the colony about the same time. They were invited to attend meeting, and hear a sermon. Before the sermon was ended, they began to grow tired and hungry. Their impatience was so great that they went out, and, breaking into a house in the neighbor- hood, eat and drank whatever they found there, without cer- emony.
8. In 1635 two ships arrived at Boston, with numerous passengers. The most distinguished of them was Mr Henry Vane. He was a man of wit and shrewdness, and became so popular, that in the following year he was chosen gover- nor, in the place of Mr Winthrop. His election was com- plimented by a salute from all the ships in the harbor, which were fifteen in number. The next week he invited all the ship masters to a dinner.
9. For several months, Governor Vane continued to give great satisfaction. He afterwards busied himself in religious disputes, and became unpopular. Mrs Hutchinson, a wo- man of much eloquence and vanity, undertook to establish a weekly meeting of the religious women of the church. It was held at her own house, and she was in the habit of ma- king long prayers and addresses there.
10. She soon began to circulate some strange opinions in respect to religion. The church were much divided about them. Governor Vane joined the party of Mrs Hutchinson. This gave offence to a great many of his old friends, and at the next election he was turned out of office.
30
HISTORY OF BOSTON.
11. This election took place in May. The weather being quite warm, it was held in a field. Great noise and confu- sion attended it, and some of the parties came to blows. One of the electors climbed upon the bough of a tree, and addressed the meeting at the top of his voice. He advised them to hurry to business, and the people crying out ' Elec- tion ! Election !' they proceeded to vote. Mr Winthrop was returned to his old office of governor.
12. Mr Vane was much displeased, and at last almost came to an open quarrel with Governor Winthrop. He de- termined to return to England, and in August set sail from Boston. A military company escorted him to the shore, and fired several volleys by way of salute. Five pieces of can- non were also discharged, and five more at the castle. On arriving in his native country, Mr Vane became a violent politician. He joined the party against King Charles, and was beheaded in 1662 for high treason.
13. Mrs Hutchinson continued her weekly lectures, and caused a great deal of mischief by them. She was finally banished from the colony, and went with her husband to Rhode Island. In 1642, she removed to a Dutch settlement in New York, and in the following year was captured and slain by the Indians. Of her whole family, consisting of fif- teen persons, only one escaped.
14. In the November of 1637, and the winter months which followed, the weather was exceedingly severe, and the in- habitants of Boston suffered much from the want of fire-wood.
31
'HISTORY OF BOSTON.
For about four months, snow lay upon the ground to the depth of four feet and a half. On the thirteenth of January the day was clear, and a party of thirty men went to Spec- tacle Island for the purpose of cutting wood.
15. The next night a violent storm set in, which was fol- lowed by high winds and extreme cold, for two days. The harbor was frozen over with the exception of a narrow chan- nel, by which twelve of the men found their way to an Isl- and which was then called Governor's Garden. Seven more were carried out in their skiff's among the rocks, and re- mained there forty-eight hours, without food or fire.
16. The rest attempted to pass over the ice from the isl- and to the town, and with much difficulty succeeded. Of those driven down among the rocks, all had their feet and hands frozen, and one died. The colonists were sadly dis- heartened, and even thought of breaking up the settlement.
17. In the month of May 1639, we read of a great milita- ry muster in Boston. A thousand soldiers were collected from different parts of the Bay. They were divided into two regiments, well armed and exercised. A day was pass- ed in military actions, and skirmishes of various kinds. Governor Winthrop commanded one regiment, and the depu- ty governor the other.
19. Two years afterwards there was another muster in Boston, which lasted two days. About twelve hundred men were assembled, and their place of meeting is said to have been by the bottom of the Common, on a slight elevation
32
HISTORY OF BOSTON.
which once existed there, and which was called Fox Hill. It is said that at this early day, some good people thought ill of these great trainings ; because, from their show and pomp, the mother country might think her colonies were looking forward to independence.
20. About this time the town was thrown into a great com- motion. What do my readers think was the cause of it ? It was neither an Indian war, nor a flood, nor a famine, nor a pestilence. It was merely a pig !
21. A Mrs Sherman owned a pig which had a taste for rambling. One fine summer morning, it left its straw with- out ever saying as much as 'Good morning,' and trotted along through the town, feasting in every corn-field which offered any thing to its liking.
22. It so happened that a stray pig was caught a few weeks after, and brought to Captain Keayne. The captain was an honest man, and disposed to give every one his due ; _ so he hired the town-crier to go about, and let the people know that he had found a pig. Nobody claimed it, howev- er, and the captain determined to fatten it for his own eating. He kept it a year in the yard with a pig of his own, and in due time had the latter killed.
23. Mrs Sherman now came forward, and accused Cap- tain Keayne of killing her pig .. The matter was examined by the members of the church, and he was declared innocent. Our good lady carried her cause to court, and not only lost it, but had to pay £3 into the bargain. The captain then
33
HISTORY OF BOSTON.
prosecuted her, and a friend who had urged her to slander him, and obtained £20 for defamation.
24. The case again went into a court at Salem, and then to the General Court of the colonies. Mrs Sherman was so vexatious and persevering, that the captain finally made her a present of the living pig, in order to get rid of her, and restore public peace.
CHAPTER IV.
Increase of the town. Death of Governor Winthrop. Anec- dote. Mr Cotton. Trial and Execution for Witchcraft.
1. THE little town continued to flourish, and increase. After erecting their houses, and providing for their immedi- ate necessities, the inhabitants began to think of adding to their possessions. They built small vessels, and sent them out on fishing voyages. Some employed themselves in saw- ing boards, and splitting staves, shingles and hoops. In time, merchants came over from foreign countries to trade with them, and the town began to wear quite an appearance of business.
2. Early in 1649, Boston suffered a sad loss in the death of Governor Winthrop. He had been an early and power- ful friend of the town, was very frugal, charitable, and much beloved. A story is told of him which shows his character to have been kind and generous, though it seems to be at variance with his own strict and stern principles of honesty.
35
1687893 HISTORY OF BOSTON.
3. In one of the very severe winters, which the early set- tlers were obliged to endure, a man complained to the gov- ernor that his wood-pile had been robbed. 'Do you know the thief ?' asked the governor. The reply was that it was a poor fellow in the neighborhood. 'Send him to me,' was the answer, ' and I will cure him of stealing.'
4. The thief appeared trembling with fear, and with his head hung down in shame and terror. He expected to be whipped in public, or placed in the stocks, at least. All that the governor said, however, was; 'Friend, the sea- son is a very cold one, and I am afraid you are poorly pro- vided with wood ; you are welcome to help yourself at my pile till the winter is over.'
5. Governor Winthrop was buried in a tomb on the north side of the chapel burial ground. A portrait of him is still preserved. He was about six feet high, with a long beard, a high forehead, and dark hair. His memory has been cher- ished with much love and respect, for he was a good man and a wise governor.
6. In 1652, the first minister of the town died. This was the learned and excellent Mr John Cotton. He was a man of impressive appearance, with a fine, clear voice, and a plain natural style of preaching. His influence in the new settlement was very great, and lie deserves to be re- membered as one of the first and best of our clergy.
7. One of the most remarkable occurrences in the history of the colony took place in 1655. This was a trial and con-
36
HISTORY OF BOSTON.
demnation for witchcraft. In this time of general intelli- gence, a child would ridicule notions which were then firm- ly believed by men of standing, respectability, and reputa- tion.
8. The person who suffered was a woman named Ann Hibbins. Her husband had been a merchant, and at one period was possessed of considerable fortune. In the later part of his life, however, he met with large losses which troubled him a good deal, and made his wife very cross and quarrelsome.
9. It was wrong in the old lady to be noisy, and to dis- pute with her neighbors : but if all cross people were to be hung for witches, it would thin the population of the world very considerably. Mrs Hibbins became at last such a scold, and so very unruly and turbulent, that the members of the church took notice of it, and rebuked her.
10. This seems to have had but little effect, and her neighbors began to suspect her of what they called witch- craft. She was prosecuted for this imaginary crime, and was finally convicted and condemned to be hung. Her execution took place in June 1656.
11. It seems strange that the good and intelligent men of the community could not have so far restrained the mad- ness of the populace, as to prevent the commission of such an atrocious murder under the mockery of justice. This, however, was the third case of execution for witchcraft in
37
HISTORY OF BOSTON.
New England. The first was in Connecticut. The second was in Boston in 1648.
12. This moral plague afterwards raged with great vio- lence in Salem, and many suffered death, for their supposed connection with evil spirits. So insane were the people on the subject, that a dog was publicly hung, as an accomplice of his master ! The delusion, however, was one of the sins of the age, and not confined to a particular spot. It de- stroyed more in a single county of England, than it did in all the American colonies.
CHAPTER V.
Indian Tribes. King Philip. Attack on Swansey. Ano- ther Expedition. Anecdote of the Periwig. Death of Philip. One-eyed John.
1. I AM now going to tell you something about the Indian Wars. The inhabitants of Boston were never very much troubled by the natives in their immediate neighborhood ; but the little inland settlements and villages were often dis- tressed by them.
2. The Indians throughout Massachusetts were separated into a number of distinct tribes. These tribes were not united under one head, nor bound together by any common government. They were entirely separate and independ- ent. One after another, they had made treaties with the white men, and agreed to submit to their authority. For a long time they lived together in great friendship. The white men were. just and cautious ; and the savages kept their promises, and hunted and fished in peace.
Philip addressing his Tribe.
.
41
HISTORY OF BOSTON.
3. About the year 1670, the conduct of the Indians began to appear suspicious. It was thought prudent to take pre- cautions against them. In Rhode Island there was a very cunning and brave chief by the name of Philip. He lived at Mount Hope, a beautiful hill, which has become quite famous, as having been the residence of this king. He pos- sessed a great deal of power, and was a bitter enemy of the white men.
4. It was an evil sight to him, to see the natives of the soil displaced by the rapid growth of the English colonies. He was unwilling to part with the fields and hills, which had so long been the pleasant hunting grounds of his ancestors. He was crafty, bold, and vigorous. His people looked upon him as a great warrior, and obeyed him. They were glad to listen to his counsel, and were easily excited to hate and persecute the strangers, who had come to drive them away from the homes and the graves of their fathers.
5. Philip was too cunning to appear at once as an enemy. He pretended to be a friend of the colonists, and made many promises and professions of peace. Meanwhile he was going about among the different tribes, and endeavoring to rouse them to war. He laid a plot for the Indians to rise at the same time in all quarters, and drive the English en- tirely out of the country.
6. As the confidence of Philip and his adherents increas- ed, it began to display itself in acts of violence. In June 1675, a party of the hostile Indians entered the town of
4
42
HISTORY OF BOSTON.
Swansey, in the Plymouth colony, and, after killing the cat- tle, plundered the houses, and murdered or wounded several of the inhabitants. The troops of Plymouth colony imme- diately marched to the relief of this devoted village. In the flight which followed their depredations, the Indians marked their course by burning buildings, and by poles at the wayside, on which they placed the hands and heads of the whites whom they had killed.
7. Information of this attack was at once dispatched to Boston. A company of foot soldiers under Captain Hench- man, and a troop of horse, were sent to the relief of the settlement. Having arrived at Swansey and rested there one night, the whole force passed over the bridge that led to Mount Hope, and obliged the enemy to retreat some dis- tance. An ensign by the name of Savage, a young man about twenty years of age, quite distinguished himself in this skirmish. As he boldly held the colors in front of his company, he was shot at by ten or twelve of the savages, and received a bullet in his thigh. Another passed through the brim of his hat.
8. New troops arrived to the assistance of the colo- nists, and the Indian tribes in those parts were soon routed. Philip fled to the western part of the colony, and some of the Boston troops returned. Captain Hench- man was sent on another expedition, in November of the same year. Hearing of a number of Indians at Mendon, he went with his soldiers to attack them in their wigwams.
43
HISTORY OF BOSTON.
His men behaved in a very cowardly manner, and deserted bim just at the moment of the combat. So he was obliged to give up his purpose.
9. Rather a laughable incident occurred in one of these expeditions. About sixty white men met with a party of three hundred Indians, in an open plain, and both sides made preparations for battle. When every thing was ready, the captain of the whites plucked off his wig, and put it in his pocket, to prevent any accident happening to it, and that it might not hinder him in fighting. As soon as the Indians saw that, they raised a most hideous yell, crying out ' Umh, umh, me no fight Engismon, Engismon got two hed; if me cut off un hed, he got noder, a put on beder as dis!' Away the whole tribe fled, and could not be overtaken.
10. In the following winter, there were a good many en- counters with the Indians, in which the colonists were some- times successful, and sometimes unfortunate. The savages still advanced towards Boston, with the intention to burn the town, and kill the inhabitants. It was thought necessa- ry to post a guard at the entrance of the town, and no In- dian was suffered to go in or out unless he was strictly watched.
11. Before the close of the year, the great Indian king and warrior, Philip, was slain. Captain Clark, with a faith- ful and brave band of soldiers, pursued him to the recesses of Mount Hope. Here he was shot by an Indian friendly to the whites. He was very brave and sagacious, and a great
44
HISTORY OF BOSTON.
terror to the settlers. The lock of the gun with which he was killed, and a wooden dish taken from his wigwam, have been carefully preserved to this day.
12. There was a famous Indian called One-eyed John, who had made great threats and boasts, and was quite as in- solent, though not so wise and powerful as Philip. This fel- low was taken prisoner, and after being marched through the streets of Boston with a halter about his neck, was hang- ed at the end of the town.
CHAPTER VI.
Governor Leverett. Great fire. Loss of Charters. Sir Ed- mund Andros. Connecticut Charter. Expulsion of James II. News received in Boston. Imprisonment of Andros. Sir William Phips. His arrival in Boston. His death. First Newspaper. Benjamin Franklin.
1. . MR Leverett was governor of the colony from 1673 to 1679, when he died in the month of March. In early life he had been a soldier. He was much beloved by the colony, and his annual election was never contested. Nothing of importance happened during the time he remained in office, excepting the Indian wars.
2. In 1679 there was a great fire in Boston, which broke out about midnight on the eighth of August, and raged with extreme fury. Eighty dwelling-houses and seventy ware- houses were consumed. Several vessels with their cargoes
46
HISTORY OF BOSTON.
were burned. It was supposed that the fire was purposely kindled, by some miserable wretches, who were soon after ordered to quit the town and never to return. The town passed a regulation, that a man should be stationed on the top of every meeting house, during the Sunday services, to give the alarm in case of fire. The houses and ware-houses, re-built after this great fire, were constructed of brick, or plastered on the outside with a strong cement, mixed with gravel and glass, and slated on the top. Several of these plastered houses are still standing in Ann street, in their original form.
3. About this time the colonists fell under the displeasure of the English king. In consequence of some offence which they had given, the crown in the years 1684-1687 deprived them of their charters. These charters were parchment rolls given to the early settlers of different parts of the country, signed and sealed by the king of England, at different peri- ods. On these rolls were written the privileges given to the parties holding them, the extent of country granted to them, and the manner in which that country was to be governed.
4. By depriving the colonists of the charters, the king de- prived them of the rights and privileges which those char- ters granted. They had before been allowed to choose their own governor, but in 1686 Sir Edmund Andros was appointed by King James II, governor of the whole coun- try. He was authorized, with four of his council, to make laws, raise taxes, without the consent of any assembly of the
47
HISTORY OF BOSTON.
people. Among his other orders he was instructed to allow no printing press.
5. In 1687 the new governor marched, at the head of a body of troops, into Connecticut. It was his intention to seize the charter of this colony by force. The assembly of the colony met, and the charter was brought out into a room, where they were conversing with Andros. The meeting was prolonged till night, when the people rushed into the room, extinguished the light, and secreted the charter in an old oak tree which is still standing in Hartford.
6. James II of England was a Catholic, and attempted to restore the followers of the pope to power. His conduct dis- gusted the English nation. William, prince of Orange, had married the princess Mary, and on perceiving the discontent of the people, he landed in England with an army, and ex- pelled Jaines from the kingdom. This happened in 1688.
7. When news of these events reached Boston, Sir Ed- mund Andros issued a proclamation. In this, he charged all the officers and people to hold themselves in readiness to resist any forces, which might be sent to the colonists by the prince of Orange. The people became angry and turbulent at this measure. They heard of the expulsion of James with much joy, and, raising a mob, seized their new governor, with the most active members of his council.
8. The former governor, with several assistants, immedi- ately entered upon the direction of public affairs. William and Mary were soon proclaimed king and queen of England,
48
HISTORY OF BOSTON.
and approved the course pursued by the people and the old magistrates. Sir Andros and his friends remained for many weeks in confinement, and at length, by order of the king, were sent back to England.
9. In 1692 a new Charter was granted, and Sir William Phips was appointed the first governor under it. He was a blunt, honest man, ardent and generous, but rather coarse in his manners. He was born in Maine, his father died when he was a mere boy, and left a family of twenty- three children. William bound himself as apprentice to a ship carpenter, and in the course of time engaged in busi- ness on his own account.
10. In 1683, when about thirty-three years of age, he sail- ed from England in search of a rich Spanish ship, which had been wrecked near the Bahama Islands. After one unsuccessful attempt he discovered the wreck, and obtained from it about 300,000 pounds. From this sum he received a very ample compensation. He was soon after knighted by the king, and appointed high sheriff of New England.
11. He held this office for some time, and during his oc- cupation of it resided in Boston. In consequence of some difficulties, however, he returned to England. On receiving the appointment of governor in 1692, he again sailed for Boston, where he arrived about the middle of May.
12. On the Monday following his arrival, he was conduct- ed to the town-house, by the magistrates, the clergy and principal inhabitants of Boston and the vicinity, followed
49
HISTORY OF BOSTON.
by a large military escort. The charter was then read, and the commission of the governor proclaimed. A public din- ner was afterwards eaten, and the governor was attended back to his house. This house is still standing at the North End, and is now occupied as the Asylum for poor boys.
13. Governor Phips remained but a short time in his new office. He was faithful, but was too hasty and quarrelsome, so that he often gave offence, and many complaints were made against him. He was sent for to England to answer these complaints. After making a sufficient defence, he was preparing to return to his government, when he was taken sick and died in London early in 1694.
14. I have told you a good deal about him, because he was quite remarkable for his perseverance, industry and good sense. From being a poor and ignorant boy, he rais- ed himself to wealth and power. All of us cannot be rich and great, but we can learn, from such an example as that of Sir William Phips, that good conduct and unwearied labor will meet their due reward.
15. The year 1704 is remarkable for the appearance of the first newspaper, published in the English colonies in America. It was printed in Boston on a very small half- sheet, and was called the Boston News Letter. There are now in the United States alone more than twelve hundred newspapers.
16. Benjamin Franklin, so distinguished in American his- tory, was born in the year 1706. His father was a soap and
50
HISTORY OF BOSTON.
tallow chandler, and Benjamin was the fifteenth of seven- teen children. As every thing in respect to great and good men is interesting, I will just mention here that the house in which Franklin was born is still standing. It is at the north part of Boston, at the sign of the Blue Ball, hanging at the corner of Hanover and Union streets.
17. The brother of Franklin was the printer of the second paper published in Boston. In 1721 he published the third paper of the country, under the title of the New England Courant. It was in this paper that Benjamin first began to write. He at first sent his pieces secretly to the office, and concealed that he was the author. Finding that they were well received, he confessed that he wrote them, and obtain- ed much credit for them. These were the first efforts of a poor and humble boy, who afterwards stood with honor in the presence of kings, and was regarded as one of the first philosophers of his age.
CHAPTER VII.
Fleet at Nantasket. Violence of Commodore Knowles. Alarm of the people. Mobs. Magistrate in the stocks. Burning the barge. Governor retires to the Castle. Measures of the council. Town meeting. Issue of the affair. Town house.
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.