History of Bristol County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 72

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1818

USA > Massachusetts > Bristol County > History of Bristol County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men > Part 72

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"that in order for the incouragement of the preaching of the Word of God in the town, it is therefore agreed to raise 25 pounds for the use for one year's preaching."

Sept. 22, 1712, " Then voted John hathway, agent, to seek for and treat with some meet person, in order to dispense the word of God in said town, and to preach one month in the town, and then, being liked and approved by the town, and the person so called also agreeing with the town, to be their minister for some time as shall be hereafter agreed on."

Jan. 13, 1713, the town voted

" The minister that John hathway, the town's agent, hath brought into town, not being liked by the inhabitants, therefore it was then voted lie not to be the town's minister."

"Voted Mr. James hail shall have three pounds of the 25 pounds formerly granted by the town for some service done by him, said hail, for some of the inhabitants of this town."

Mr. James Hale was probably the person whom John Hathaway brought into town, and who did not prove acceptable to a majority, but was liked by a few.

May 25, 1713, " Voted 10 pounds to be raised for the reperation of the meeting-house, and to be added to the 30 pounds rate formerly granted by said town."

Enough has already been given to show that the people of the town, if not prosecuting or carrying on a "holy war," were persistently and determinately engaged in religious controversy. They had a few years before voted that a gospel preached in the town must be dispensed to the people's acceptance, and the town clerk, who may have been equally con- versant with the spirit of Christianity and the rules of orthography in committing said vote to the town records, stated that the dispensation must be to the town's "exceptance" (instead of acceptance) ; and thus the sequel seemed to prove, for bickerings, strife, contention, opposition, envyings, and taking exceptions to anything and everything proposed or done, attempted or recommended for the establish- ment of a preached gospel in town, became a general rule instead of an exception.

In or about the year 1715, at the request of several of the principal inhabitants, accompanied by their written promise of support, the Rev. Thomas Craig- head entered upon the duties of a gospel minister in Freetown, and he, being approbated by the ministers of the neighboring towns as qualified for the duties of that position, a meeting of the inhabitants was called by a warrant from the selectmen, and held in the meeting-house at Freetown on Monday the 9th day of September, 1717, to see if the town in its corporate capacity would vote to employ the Rev. Thomas Craighead as the town's minister. Capt. Josiah Wins- low was elected moderator, whereupon John Read, Benjamin Chace, Jr., George Winslow, Abraham Simmons, and John Cleveland protested against further proceedings, giving as their reasons for so doing "that the town had already a choice to be supplied by the Bishop of London, as may appear on record, as also the non-sufficiency of the warrant." But the legal voters present decided to proceed, and by a vote of twenty-eight for to three against, or a clear majority of twenty-five votes, made choice of Rev. Thomas Craighead to be the town's minister, and yet, after all this, Mr. Craighead, to collect his

297

FREETOWN.

pay for services, was forced to sue the town, and ob- taining a verdict in his favor, the town appealed to the General Court, where the town being again beaten, several of the principal inhabitants were thrust into the county jail, and there kept confined until Mr. Craighead was paid, a train of proceedings in which the wrong done was only equaled by the ridiculous. July 19, 1721, the town voted the use of the meeting- house to the Rev. James Macsparron "to carry on the public worship of God in at time and times, ac- cording to the true intention of his order by the rev- erend society in his mission honorably intended." The town at the same time voted that the selectmen be a committee to solicit the Rev. James Maesparron to accept the meeting- house for that service, but that such acceptance should " in no wise hinder or bar any other public use or improvement of said house as formerly."

These difficulties did, as they were reasonably cal- culated to do, prejudice many of the inhabitants against a paid ministry, and the provision for such payment when provided for by a public tax, and many, and perhaps the most, of those inhabitants best able to pay thenceforth allied themselves with the Friends or Quakers, which religious body erected a place of public worship near what is still called Quaker Hill, not far distant from the bleachery, and just across the street from what is known as the South school-house. That Quaker meeting-house was prob- ably built in or near the year 1725, and for at least half a century the Friends or Quakers were numeri- cally the largest worshiping congregation in town, embracing the men of first minds, most money, and best manners, in fact, the wit and the wealth, if not exclusively, was generally theirs. Nearly one hun- dred years ago that Quaker meeting-house was re- moved to the northern part of the town, where, as a place of public worship, it continued to be used by the Friends or Quakers nearly seventy years, when demolished, and its place supplied by a new one that is still standing.

Oct. 20, 1721, the town voted to relieve Thomas Durfee and George Winslow, constables, of .a fine levied upon them for their neglect or refusal to col- lect a tax assessed under the title of "the minister's rate." For the next quarter of a century scarcely anything appears upon the public records of Free- town concerning the support of a gospel ministry, and it was not until 1747 that another minister was settled in town, who, to relieve himself from a repeti- tion of the troubles experienced by his predecessors, made a written promise that was copied into the public record-book of the town, where it still appears in the words following :

" This instrument, made at Freetown, in ye County of Bristol, and Province of ye Massachusetts Bay, in New England, this thirtieth day of November in ye year of our Lord Christ one thousand seven hun- dred and forty-seven, Witnesseth that I, Silas Brett, of Easton, in ye County abovesd, Preacher of ye Gospel, and now Pastor Elect of Congre- gational Church of Christ, in Freetown abovesd, do hereby covenant,

promise, grant, and agree to and with the aforesaid church, and ye Con- gregation usually worshipping with them, that from the day of my Solemn Separation to The Pastoral office in said church, and for and during ye full term and time of my Continuance in That office, in said church, I will neither directly uor indirectly take advantage of ye Laws of this Province to get a salary settled on me in ye town of Freetown, but look for and expect my support by the free will offering of ye People.

" In testimony whereof, I have subscribed this Instrument, to be en- tered in ye Records of ye church aboves1, and also in ye Records of ye town, if it be desired."

" Witness my hand, " SILAS BRETT."

" A true record. Attest :

AMBROSE BARNABY, " Town Clerk."

This course of action was like oil poured upon the waters, allaying strife, but failing to secure either the support or good will of a majority of the tax-paying inhabitants, as the following from the record of a town-meeting held on the 18th day of March, 1754, most clearly serves to prove :

"Voted that those that are disposed to repair the town's meeting- house, so as to render it fit to meet in for worship, that they may have the liberty to repair the said house on their own cost and charge, and not at the charge of the town.

" ABIEL TERRY, " Town Clerk."

Rev. Silas Brett was a son of Seth Brett and wife, Sarah Alden, born in or about the year 1716. He preached to this church and society in Freetown about twenty-eight years. The church was always small, as also the congregation, and Sabbath services found in attendance but few worshipers, who, becom- ing divided in political sentiment by the troubles which gave rise to the American Revolution, soon realized that "a house divided against itself cannot stand," and the ministerial labors of Rev. Silas Brett were thus and then brought to a close, and no min- ister of this denomination was regularly settled in town from the close of Mr. Brett's labors, in or about 1775, until the engagement of Rev. Joseph P. Tyler, in or near the year 1809, when a Congregational meeting-house was erected at Assonet village, and the old meeting-house, that had stood nearly a century of years just within what is now the most northerly limits of Fall River, was demolished. Three Calvin- istic Baptist Churches for a time existed and held public worship in Freetown. One of these erected a large and commodious meeting-house in the southerly part of Assouet village, employing as their pastor the Rev. David Simmons, whose services were closed by his death, he being drowned while attempting to cross the river.

He was succeeded by the Rev. Philip Hathaway, who proclaimed the doctrines of and preached to this church until 1807, when the pastor and nearly all his people having become greatly liberalized took a " new departure" from their former faith and founded a new church, and, in imitation of the primitive brethren at Antioch, took upon themselves the name of "Christians." That Christian Church continued to ocenpy the Calvinistic Baptist meeting-house until about two years before its demolition, the Christian

298

HISTORY OF BRISTOL COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

Church and Society, in 1832, building a new meeting- house that those bodies still continue to occupy. The old meeting-house was taken down in 1835. The building of that house was probably commenced in 1793, but was not finished for use until 1796. It was neither lathed nor plastered until taken possession of by the Christians, so called. What was known as the Second Calvinistic Baptist Church in Freetown was gathered within that section now Fall River, and is in existence still, and known as the First Baptist Church in that city. Their meeting-house stood near the pond, adjacent to what is now known as the " Nar- rows." The Third Calvinistic Baptist Church in Freetown was gathered in the easterly part, or what is called New Freetown. Rev. Abner Lewis was for a time the pastor. Their meeting-house stood a little east of the village, and near what is now known as the "County road." Four churches of the Christian denomination have existed in this town, three of which were gathered in East or New Freetown; and each church has a comfortable and commodious house for public worship, and three of the four maintain a gospel ministry. There are now six church edifices in town, viz., the Trinitarian Congregational, at Asso- net village, erected in 1809, but considerably enlarged a few years since; the Christian Chapel, at Assonet village, built in 1832 ; the Friends' meeting-house, in the extreme northerly part of the town, erected in or about 1852; the Second Christian, at " Mason's Cor- ner," so called, in East Freetown, erected about fifty years ago ; the Third Christian, at Braley Four Cor- ners, built about forty years since; and the Fourth Christian, standing near the line of Rochester, built about twenty-five years ago, and is the only one of the six in which public worship is not regularly main- tained. Coercive measures for the support of the ministry in Freetown have long since been abandoned, and the last attempt at anything pointing in that direction which appears upon the public records was that of a town-meeting held on the 2d day of De- cember, 1805, and as follows :

" Voted, to drop the first article in the warrant in regard to settling a minister by the town."

" Voted, to divide the town into two districts or parishes, and to divide it as the old town and New Freetown, to be called East and West Parishes."

" Voted, to have a Committee to examine and see if there is any legally settled minister in the town, and to report at the next annual meeting."

" Benj. Weaver, Esq., Washington Hathaway, Esq., and Philip Hath- away were chosen as that Committee.

" EBEN'R PIERCE, " Town Clerk."

What report, if any, was made by that committee is not now known, and the vote then passed appears to have been not only the first but the last done, said, or written concerning the establishment of two re- ligious parishes in Freetown.

Educational .- William Way, Freetown's earliest minister of the gospel, was also the earliest school- master, having been engaged, so saith the public

record, "to Educate and instruct Children in Read- ing and Righting," which may, for aught we know, have been to teach the young ideas how to shoot in right or proper directions. Nothing more upon the public record concerning schools appears until May 15, 1718, when it was voted to set up a school to learn children to read and "right," and " made choyce of Jacob hathaway, agent to seek for a schoolmaster."

Oct. 8, 1718. " Voted, to allow thomas roberts 36 pounds for one year's service to keep the school at three several places ; the public meeting-house ; Walter Chase's ; also at or near to John howland's."

Feb. 14, 1721. " Voted and agreed to seek out for a schoolmaster for the present year, inasmuch as the last year's schoolmaster, Roberts, and the town did not agree."

May 17, 1721. " Voted, to leave it in the prudence of the selectmen to agree with William Gaige or with William Caswell to serve the town as a schoolmaster for the term or time of one year."

July 19, 1721. " Voted thirty pounds to be raised on the inhabitants to pay the town's sehoolmaster."

July 16, 1722. " Voted William Caswell thirty pounds in considera- tion of his serving the town to keep school in the town one ' hole' year ; he, sd Caswell to be at all cost of boarding or dieting himself; sd Cas- well being present did agree to serve.

" Voted, the school to be removed three times in the year; the first remove to be had at the meeting-house: the second remove to be at the lower part of the town ; thirdly, to be removed to the upper part of the town.

"Voted, the school-houses to be set at the middle of each half of the town from the meeting-house or centre."

In 1725, William Gaige was employed to teach school one year for thirty-two pounds and to board himself. In 1726, 1727, and 1728, William Caswell was employed to teach school for thirty-eight pounds a year and board himself; and also in 1729 his wages were raised to forty pounds. Caswell taught in 1729 for forty pounds, and William Gaige in 1730.

July 10, 1727. The town voted to erect two school- houses, one of which should be eighteen feet long and fourteen feet wide.

Nov. 2, 1733. " Voted the sum of fifty pounds to Mr. Israel Nichols 1 to keep school in said town, always excepting Saturday, every week."

1758. Voted Mr. James Ward sixty-six pounds to keep school one year, and sold two school-houses at public auction, one for five dollars and the other for two dollars. Dec. 17, 1744, James Meade was dis- missed from further service as the town's schoolmaster. Nov. 13, 1745, the town made choice of Shadrach Hathaway to keep school for one year. Tradition saith Shadrach Hathaway was a graduate of some college. The inscription on his tombstone states that he died Dec. 3, 1749, in the thirty-third year of his age, and therefore must have been born in or near the year 1716. He was buried on the farm now owned and occupied by Daniel Macomber. The town in 1746 purchased of Ephraim Tisdale a new school- house, together with the land upon which it stood, for the sum of one hundred pounds old tenor.

Samuel Forman, George Winslow, Stephen Chace, and Joshua Boomer were the town's committee that

1 Israel Nichols, schoolmaster in 1733, appears to have been employed in Freetown as a minister in 1739.

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FREETOWN.

contracted with Ephraim Tisdale for the building of that house and purchase of the land. It was agreed that Tisdale should also furnish convenient scats and tables, and that the house should be " finished to ye turning of a key." That house stood upon the spot now occupied by the building recently owned by Joshua Shove, late of Freetown, deccased, and wherein he kept the post-office. That school-house remained about twenty-seven years, when, from well authenticated tradition, we learn that it was acci- dentally destroyed by fire. The town also in 1745 voted to add twelve feet to the length of what was then the middle school-house, and also to provide said house with a good chimney. It is doubtful whether that vote was put into effect, as on the 6th day of May, 1748, the town " voted to build a new school- house of twenty-four feet in length and twenty feet wide, upon the town land in the centre of the town, near or upon the spot on which the old school-house stands." This town land, so called, was that upon which the town erected a meeting-house some time between the years 1710 and 1715. It lies just within the most northern limits of Fall River. Jan. 17, 1750. -"Voted, that Joseph Brightman, Jr., should take care to mend that school-house at ye south end of sd town upon ye town charge, and bring in his account for allowance at our next March meeting." Jan. 7, 1755 .- "The town voted to dismiss the former com- mittee that were chose to build the middle school- house, and then made choice of Nathan Simmons to finish sd house." This vote of the town, although not complimentary to the committee, could not justly be characterized as hasty, for nearly seven years had passed since the town voted to build the house, and the work in charge of that committee still remained incomplete, and the prospect probably was that, after being forgiven for their delay seven times, they would need to be for seventy and seven.

" March 15, 1762 .- Agreed with Capt. Elisha Parker to build a school- house in New Freetown, 18 feet long and 14 feet wide, in the most con- venient part of sd town, for 21 pounds 6 shillings lawful money, to be completed by the Ist of Oct. next; the aforesaid house to be shingled, ye Ruff and sides, and seated within, and a brick chimney."

" Agreed that they shall have 1/s part of the school for the future."

That school-house was probably located at or near what is now known as Mason's Corner. Freetown at that date embraced what in 1803 became Fall River, and from the vote passed March 15, 1762, it may be quite reasonably inferred that the inhabitants of East or New Freetown then equaled only one-eighth part of the entire population of the town.

" April 18, 1768 .- Voted, that the selectmen supply the town with a grammar schoolmaster as soon as may be.

" March 20, 1769 .- The town voted William Palmer £24 15s, and 10 pence, for 7 months keeping school ; also paid schoolmaster Brown for keeping school one month £1 168 .; schoolmaster Crocker, for keeping school three months, 5 pounds 8 shillings."

Most of this labor in teaching school had donbt- less been performed in 1768, as in November, 1769, the town made choice of " an agent to answer a pre-

sentment of the grand jury rs, sd town, because they were destitute of a schoolmaster, as the law directs."

" Aug. 29, 1770 .- Voted, to James Tisdale, for keeping school twelve weeks in New Freetown, three months and a half in ye middle of the old part of the town, and six months at Assonet, the sum of 24 pounds 11 shillings."

"Jan. 6, 1772 .- Voted, that Mr. Shadrach Winslow shall be the town's grammar schoolmaster for two months at 40 shillings per month, and 6 shillings per week for his board."

Shadrach Winslow was a son of Lieut .- Col. James Winslow, of Freetown, and wife, Charity Hodges, and born Dec. 17, 1750. He was a graduate of Yale College, studied medicine, and settled for practice in Foxborough. The town, on the 17th day of May, 1773, voted to build a school-house at Assonet village, and locate it upon the spot occupied by the school-house erected in 1746, that had then, probably, recently been burned.

" Voted, to build ye sd house of ye same bigness of ye middle school- house in sd town.

"Voted, that Capt. George Chase shall provide timber and stuff suit- able to build ye sd house, and to build it at as low an expense as he pos- sibly can.

"Chose Joshua Howard Brett the town's schoolmaster, and voted to release him from town-rate."

That school-house remained in the possession of the town until Aug. 7, 1809, when disposed of at pub- lic auction for the sum of forty dollars. Joshua Howard Brett, the town's schoolmaster, was a son of the Rev. Silas Brett, and born June 29, 1751, united in marriage with Annie Dunbar, of Easton, April 4, 1782. He studied medicine, and for a time practiced in Freetown. He was an assessor at Freetown two years, and on the 18th of May, 1782, elected as rep- resentative to the General Court.

July 3, 1781. " Voted, the upper school-house at Assonet be a work- house to put the poor in, and Capt. George Chase chose to be overseer."

The bills that year paid for the support of the poor appear to have amounted to the sum of four hundred and sixteen dollars.

" March 18, 1782. Voted, that the poor of Freetown that are upon the town should be put into the school-house near Assonet bridge, except the Widow Davis' family."

"August, 1784. Voted, to reconsider that vote about the school-house for the poor. Then voted to put the poor out to the lowest bidder."

Dec. 9, 1791. The town of Freetown was divided into seven school districts, when it was decided that the size of each school-house built or to be built, together with the number of families in cach district, should be as follows :

District.

House.

Families.

No. 1

by 20

No. 2.

by 20

No. 3

24 by 20

No. 4

2516 by 201/2

No. 5

22 by 18

No. 6

by 18

No. 7

by 17

Districts Nos. 1 and 7 were in what afterwards be- came Fall River ; District No. 4 at Assonet; District No. 5 included Slab Bridge, Quanapang, and the

300

HISTORY OF BRISTOL COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

Backside, leaving the family of Ashley at option to send to which district he pleases; District No. 6 to include all the inhabitants to ye eastward of Bolton's cedar swamp, and also to include ye family of Ben- jamin Westcoat, Mr. Rounseville, Levi Rounseville, Thomas Rounseville, and Philip Rounseville.

" Abraham Ashley, Joshua Lawrence, Edward Chase, are a committee to conduct ye matter respecting building a school-house in ye district to which they belong."

It was at the same time agreed that schools should be kept as follows :

" In District No. 1, 1 month and 3 weeks.

2, 1

" 3

3, 1 4, 2 months.

" 3

5, 1 month and 2 weeks.

7,1

" Voted, yt ye Neighborhood of Mr. Wilson's shall have their money and help themselves to schooling.

" Voted, Nath'l Morton (3d) to see to repairing of ye schoolhouse in Dist. No. 6.

" Sept. 21, 1795. Voted, that Nathaniel Morton, Jr., Esq'r, Benjamin Durfee, and Col. Benjamin Weaver, be a committee to examine into the state of the schools within the town and make a report at the next meeting.

" Voted, that Job Morton, Col. Benjamin Weaver, and Dr. John Turner, Jr., be a committee to examine the qualifications of, and agree with such persous as they may think proper, to employ as teachers of the public schools within the town the year ensuing.

" WILLIAM ENNIS, Town Clerk."

" November, 1800. Voted, there be a committee appointed respecting schools and arranging matters and things, and see in what districts schooling is due.

" Voted that Nath'l Morton, Esq'r, Col. Benjamin Weaver, and Simeon Borden be that committee.

. BENJAMIN PORTER, JR., Town Clerk."

" Aug. 10, 1802. The committee appointed to ex- amine and ascertain the amount of schooling due to each district up to Dec. 31, 1801, report as follows :

" Due to District No. 1, 5 months, 24 days.

4 2, 2 3 3, 5 4,3 18 =

= = 5, 1 month, 23 “ =

12 .

6, 1 7, 7 months, 16 " 8, 14 days. 9, 1 month, 5 days. 10, 23 days.

" BENJAMIN WEAVER, " SIMEON BORDEN, " NATH'L MORTON, JR., Committee. " JOB PEIRCE, JR., Town Clerk."

" April 2, 1804. Chose Cols. Benjamin Weaver, William Rounseville, and Washington Hathaway as a committee to inspect all the town schools that are kept in this town.

" EBEN'R PEIRCE, Town Clerk."

" Nov. 22, 1804. Voted to double the school money in each district from this time.

" EBEN'R PEIRCE, Town Clerk."

"Aug. 5, 1805. Voted to raise $300 to defray our town school charges; and it is to be paid into the treasury by the first day of November next."

" Voted to accept the report of the school committee as follows: For arrears of schooling since the last adjustment in 1801 up to the close of the present year, 1805 :

Due to South District, now No. 1, $187.91

Assonet West,

52,38

Assonet East,

41.89

late No. 9,

4, 74.17

5, 59.15

6, 24.60

7, 49.20

54.55

" BENJAMIN WEAVER,

" JOB MORTON,

" Committee. "EBEN'R PEIRCE, Town Clerk."

" The committee appointed to revise the school districts in the town of Freetown and report how much money each district shall receive yearly, in lieu of the time heretofore allowed them, having attended the service assigned them, offer the following report:

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History of Bristol County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 72

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed Publication date: 1883 Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co. Number of Pages: 1818

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1818