USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > Dedham > History of Dedham, Massachusetts > Part 5
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LADDERS. To prevent damage by fire every house holder was required to provide and maintain a good and sufficient ladder long enough to reach to the top of the chimney of his house, and failing after fourteen days notice, to do so was subject to a fine of five shillings. An annual inspection was made of all ladders. In view of the town's requirements each house holder was allowed to take wood from the common lands for the making of a ladder for his own use, but not allowed to take wood for making ladders
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for sale. As the town ladder belonging to the meeting-house had been made "uncapable" by breaks, it was ordered that whosoever removed, or caused to be removed, the ladder, except in case of fire of some house, shall forfeit for every such offense five shill- ings.
CLAPBOARDS. The use of clapboards in building was at first denied from fear that Indians would set fire to their houses by putting fire brands under the clapboards. At a meeting of the proprietors held in Watertown, December 31, 1636, Ezechiell Hol- liman was fined fifteen shillings for covering his house with clap- boards contrary to an order previously given. But "as certain of our company are going up to inhabit this winter at our Towne of Dedham" and other material hard to get for closing in their house, permission was granted for the use of clapboards in build- ing "from the present day until the first daye of the third month next called May daye". In April 1637 Lambert Genery having provided clapboards for his house but prevented from laying them by sickness and "Some employment for the general good" was granted liberty to use them until the first of June next. Novem- ber 28, 1637 it was ordered that any inhabitant lacking pine clap- board trees, or other suitable timber might have such trees as- signed him to meet his apparent want, by a committee of the town. July 6, 1638 it was ordered that the clapboarding of houses "set at liberty unto all men from this tyme forward". The tak- ing of timber for clapboards became such an industry in the westerly part of Dedham, that it was later called the Clapboard Tree Parish, (Westwood).
Roofs were at first thatched but shingles came into use in build- ing the school house in 1651. The shaving of shingles was an in- dustry in the great cedar swamp, near the saw mill* which was located in what is now Walpole. No compensation was allowed for trees "split by default of the feller". Samuel Morse, Philemon Dalton, Ferdinando Adams and Ralph Shepard were authorized to establish a price for getting "ye timber to ye pits". John Ropes in 1641 being destitute of corn craved license of the Town to sell some boards which he had sawed. His request was granted and
* There was an early saw mill on Mother Brook and another in the South Parish, near the Ellis Station, yet the late Judge Charles F. Jenny held that this was the first saw mill in Dedham as established by Court records.
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he was allowed to take more timber "to ye quantity of a 1000" for the same purpose.
SAW PITS. Previous to the erection of a saw mill in 1658 all boards were cut in the laborous saw pits of the town. As late as a century ago numerous saw pits could still be seen in Dedham woods. The Town allowed in 1637 for digging pits twelve feet long, four and a half feet wide and five feet deep 2s. 6d. and carpenters were given 12d. for making pitholes. The price es- tablished for sawing pine boards was five shillings and for split- ting boards six shillings per hundred, and for "ye breaking carfe of 2 foot deep" 3s. per foot running measure. In building the meeting-house in 1637 Thomas Wight, John Dwight, Nicholas Phillips and John Eaton undertook to fell the necessary timber at the following price "pyne of 2 foote over at ye carfe sixe pence and for oake of the same dimensions eight pence", and all trees of a greater or smaller size at the same rate. For cross cutting "every 2 foote over" 6d.
TILLAGE FIELD. In 1643 the proprietors agreed that two hudrned acres of land should be made a common planting field where each man's share should be marked out and assigned to him by a Committee. In the assignment of lots the Reverend John Allin received twenty-three acres, Elder Hunting and Deacon Chickering eight acres each and Major Lusher thirteen acres while the other inhabitants received from one to eight acres. Planting fields were later assigned from time to time to individual proprietors in different parts of the town. The proprietors were very zealous for the settlement and improvement of their lands and as certain lots had remained unimproved it was ordered August 11, 1637 that "if they do not within six days set out to build and improve them then the said lots may be disposed of to other men." Peter Woodward was licensed, September 28, 1640 to purchase land and so became a townsman provided he sub- scribed his name to "Ye Towne orders".
PASTURES. Previous to the Dedham grant the General Court had granted to Samuel Dudley three hundred acres of meadow and upland which the proprietors record as "seated near unto our Towne now named Dedham." For the furtherance of the planta- tion Samuel Morse, Philemon Dalton, John Dwight and Lam- bert Genery purchased the Dudley allotment which they "lovingly
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resigned to our towne" for £20. It was therefore ordered at a general meeting held on January 28, 1636 that 13s 4d be as- sessed on "ye first 30 lots already granted" to meet the expense of the purchase, which each man was ordered to pay on the 30th day of the present month. In return for this assessment it was ordered that a certain quantity of meadow "lying next to Little River" shall become a summer pasture for milch cows where all who paid the assessment had the free pasturage of two cows, while the grantor had the privilege of pasturing three cows for- ever. Any man who failed to pay his assessment forfeited his right in this pasture field forever. As oxen from necessity were used in the development of farms a pasture for working cattle was early set apart. Later a committee was empowered to lay out land on Dedham Island for a "pasture for bullocks." This Island was also used for the pasturage of young cattle and dry stock. For allowing dry cattle to go at large without a keeper, to the injury of home herds, the owner was subject to a fine of 5s. for every beast so allowed to roam, the fine to be paid to the injured party. That dry cattle might be properly cared for a committee was appointed in 1652 to procure a herdsman and pro- vide a yard for the care of dry herds.
CANOES AND BOATS. All travel was at first by water hence the assignment of landing places on Charles River. Canoes and boats were so necessary in the development of the town that in November 1637 it was agreed "that whosoever intends to make a canoe for his own use" shall have a pine tree assigned to him provided "he doth finish ye same canoe within thirty days after ye same be felled, upon ye penalty of 20s fyne". There was so much taking of boats and canoes without license that in order to rectify the abuse an order was passed in 1638 "that whosoever took a boat without license of ye owner shall pay ten shillings," and for every canoe so taken a fine of five shillings was imposed to be paid in each case to the owner or owners. Canoes were in active use on the River in 1651 when complaints were made that great wrong was being done the owners by persons taking away their canoes without their license or knowledge. It was there- fore ordered by the Selectmen that if any person after the day of publication of the notice shall take away or remove any canoe within the town, from the place where the owner has from time
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to time fastened or left it without leave or consent shall for every such offense forfeit to the owner the sum of one shilling. At one time canoes were not allowed by the Selectmen being considered "too dangerous to ones comfort".
TRADES. The early settlers were farmers and not artisans brought up to trades, so persons having trades were early en- couraged to settle among them for the benefit of the community.
Edward Colver a wheelwright was given two acres of land in 1637 "for employment in his trade" with free liberty to take lumber for his occupation. Nathaniel French, a wheelwright, employed his trade in 1665 when he promised to take so much timber from the town common as will make six pairs of wheels to be sold and used in the town. George Fairbanks was evidently a cooper, as he was given permission in 1638, to fell and take for his own use, from time to time, such timber as he needed for his trade provided he neither sold or traded away the timber un- wrought into vessels. He was given further liberty to allow his felled trees to lie on the ground for the space of one year pro- vided they bore some known mark of his. Edward Hawes is granted liberty, for his sons, to take two or three trees from the town common to make coopers wares for town use.
To encourage a blacksmith to settle among them a "smiths lot" was early set apart. Here Joshua Fisher, in June 1637, set up a shop to do work for the town in anticipation of the arrival of his father the next summer to continue the work. A town meeting was held August 13, 1638 to take action in reference to a black- smith "to be enterteyned". It was agreed at this meeting "to lay down certin money to buy coles to further ye same", and three pounds eleven shillings and eight pence was raised by a note, the money "to be wrought out by ye Smith for ye sayed several men". Edward Kempe was entertained as a blacksmith August 28, 1638 and given one half of the "smiths lot". William Avery was a black- smith and was given liberty in 1650, under certain conditions to set his shop on the highway on East Street near his house.
While the blacksmith today is a manual worker of no more im- portance than other artisans, in the early settlement of the town he was a most important workman .* Oxen had to be shod to
*Some of the planters were doubtless provident enough to bring with them the farm implements catalogued by Higginson as "needful things" for the New Eng- land plantation, namely ; 1 broad hoe, 1 narrow hoe; 1 broad axe; 1 felling axe ; 1 steel hand saw; 1 shovel; 1 spade; 2 augers; 4 chisels; 2 piercers; 1 gimlet ; and 1 hatchet.
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protect their hoofs from rough, uneven, and frozen ground; im- plements to be made to cultivate the soil, with tools for the car- penter; all other trades were subordinate to the blacksmith.
Daniel Pond, one of the early settlers, was Dedham's first car- penter. He continued at his trade for some years and was em- ployed in 1651 to put two windows upon the backside of the meet- ing-house, also to set up a sufficient frame upon the north side of the meeting-house for the hanging of a bell and the shingling of the pent house over the bell. Joseph Morse was a joiner but found no woodwork to be finished in Dedham houses in 1638.
Edward Richards, who was in Dedham in March 1638, was the first shoemaker. Permission was granted to Asahel Smith to settle in Dedham in 1671 and to use his trade as a shoemaker.
Thomas Eames was a brickmaker and a committee was ap- pointed in 1640 to search for "brick earth" and provide a place for burning brick. Eames was granted the wood on four acres of swamp so long as "he shall burn brick at ye kill". Glay or brick earth was early dug at Little River and a "Brick Kill" is referred to on Dedham Island in 1643. Ralph Day was a brickmaker and given permission in 1649 to take clay for brick making. John Littlefield was given liberty in 1677 to take clay to supply the in- habitants of the town with merchantable brick at a price not ex- ceeding twenty-five shillings a thousand.
In 1677 it was voted to entertain a tanner provided one could be found to answer the needs of the town. Samuel Aldridge made a motion in 1678 for timber to build a tan house and vats. John Damon of Reading made application in 1681, to have liberty to come and dwell in Dedham and practise his trade as a tanner; his application was held for consideration and a committee appointed to inquire concerning the young man. The town being informed in 1670 that Thomas Walker, a tanner, had manifested a willing- ness to set up his trade in Dedham, the matter was left to the Selectmen, who were empowered to allow his settlement if they were encouraged so to do.
Joshua Fisher is granted liberty to take as much of the town timber as will enable him to rebuild his brew house, also timber to build a cider mill. Joseph Dean is granted liberty to make a cider press and to take such timber as is necessary from the town common. The cutting of ship timber and the burning of char-
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coal were early industries. In 1661 Sergeant Avery was granted "the wood upon 'tirkie' Island that is fit for making charcoal."
WAGES PAID AT THIS PERIOD WERE AS FOLLOWS :- A common laborer received 1s. 6d. per day; women's labor from £4 to £5 per annum; mowing, 2s. per day; a man, 8 oxen and cart 8s. per day; wheelwrights, September to March 1s. 4d. and March to September 1s. 8d .; carpenters, masons and stone layers, March to October 2s. per day; master tailor 12d. per day with board; blacksmith's apprentice for 9 years £12 and double ap- parel; men's washing and diet for 1 year including bedding £9; 1 meal at inn 2d .; 1 quart of beer at inn 1d.
CHAPTER V
MEETING HOUSE
ITHE inhabitants of Dedham soon took under consideration the building of a meeting house. January 1, 1637 Michael Metcalf, John Luson, Anthony Fisher, and Joseph Kingsbury were chosen to "Contrive the Fabricke of a meeting house to be in length 36 foote & 20 foote in bredth, & betweene the upp & nether sell in ye studds 12 foote, the same to be girte". The committee was authorized to take both pine and oak timber from the town land -Wigwam plain-for building purposes and to regulate wages equally in all cases. On August 28, 1637 John Howard and Nicholas Phillips were chosen to "mowe, gather up and bring home thatch for ye meeting house together with all manner of other materials for ye same and put it out to thatching." Thus the inhabitants were engaged in gathering material for their meeting house, working as they had opportunity during the year 1637, in preparing timber which was brought together and framed ready for raising in the spring of the following year. On May 30, 1638 it was ordered that the meeting house shall be set up in the place "where it now lyeth, or upon some part of the waste ground near thereunto."
It should be remembered that these settlers were Englishmen who brought to this country the custom of the father land. At this time houses were generally thatched in England and the same practise was adopted here in the early settlement of the town. It is an interesting fact that the meeting house remained thatched until 1652 when Lieutenant Joshua Fisher was employed to shingle it.
As usual there was some difficulty in locating the meeting house as some of the inhabitants wanted it built on the east side of Little River, later called Dwight's Brook, while others wanted it located near the training field. On July 6, 1638 it was ordered, however, that "ye meeting house shall stand upon ye end of Jos. Kingsbury's lot", the spot on which the meeting houses of the First Church have stood for nearly three hundred years. It was placed on this spot, as the record runs "in loving satisfaction to
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FIRST MEETING HOUSE
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MEETING HOUSE OF THE FIRST CHURCH BUILT IN 1763
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MEETING HOUSE
some neighbors on the East side of Little River." Thomas Fisher undertook the work of building the meeting house but died before it was finished. His account, however, was taken up by the town and equitably settled with his widow. Just when the meeting house was first used for worship the records do not tell. From some scruple Puritan meeting houses were not dedicated. The groves were truly God's first temples. Here the inhabitants, dur- ing the summer of 1637 and 1638, worshipped under the trees which shaded the plain. Tradition places one of these trees under which they worshipped a little west of the site of First Parish meeting house. To meet the expense of building the meeting house a rate was levied in proportion to "wch evry man now hath (land) granted unto him." The constable was instructed to col- lect the tax, with charges against all delinquents after June 1, 1638. The meeting house remained unfinished for nearly ten years, but in 1646, the inhabitants ordered that it should be forth- with completely finished and John Thurston was engaged to place seats in the "new house"* and in the middle alley in the "old house" for which he was paid thirteen pounds and ten shillings, (five pounds in cedar boards; twenty shillings in Indian corn and the balance in wheat). The plantation increased in population and ten years after the erection of the meeting house additional accommodations were needed which were met by the erection of new galleries.
As provision was made in building the meeting house for fell- ing trees, carting timber and cost of sawing boards it is evident that the first meeting house was a frame building which was added to as the number of inhabitants increased. After the weekly lecture September 16, 1653 it was thought needful that the meeting house should be "better enclosed by daubing the walls" and as workmen fit to do the work were hard to obtain, and pay to their content was scarce, it was proposed that the town should jointly do the work. This proposition was evidently hard to carry out and four years later had not been accomplished. At a general meeting of the town held on January 1, 1657 it was voted to have the meeting house lathed upon the studs and daubed and whitened over workman like. Before the building of a watch
*The records throw no light on what was called the "new house" in 1646, obviously the "old house" was the original building.
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tower, in connection with the school house, the meeting house was used as a watch tower for a short time as the fear of an Indian attack was evidently present.
No better description of the house of worship, or a more fitting tribute to the early settlers can be given than that of Herman Mann .* No coat of paint adorned their humble temple; no win- dows of glass admitted the light to guide them in their devotions; no notes from the deep-toned organ mingled with their voices in the loud swelling anthem of praise; no cushioned seats, no car- peted floor or artificial warmth invited them to the place for bodily comfort and recreation. The pealing bell sent not forth its summoning notes for them. No worldly pride, or fondness for ostentatious display, impelled the first settlers of this town to congregate in the temple devoted to the service of the great Je- hovah. Their devotion was the homage of the heart alone. The deep-felt, inward feeling of dependence on a superintending Prov- idence for preservation and support, was sufficient to induce them to brave the wintry winds and numerous inconveniences, and as- semble on this consecrated spot to unite in the worship of their God in the manner their consciences dictated.
Before the hanging of a bell and occasionally later all meet- ings were called by the beating of a drum for which service Ralph Day was paid twenty shillings in cedar boards at four shillings per hundred in 1646. Lieutenant Joshua Fisher was deputed January 1, 1650 to employ Joshua Kent to beat the drum, keep the dogs out of the meeting house and carefully attend to shutting the doors, also to be the grave digger and the keeper of the pound. In 1650 the town opened a correspondence with the selectmen of Boston in reference to the purchase of a bell for the meeting house. Captain Thomas Cromwell, a famous buccaneer, in his will dated August 26, 1649 and probated two months later, gave the Town of Boston, six bells which the selectmen were authorized to dispose of to the best advantage. Dedham evidently purchased one of these bells and Daniel Pond was employed for "ye hanging of ye bell upon the north end of ye meeting house". The bell was placed upon a frame covered by a pent house. The meeting-house bell, through the years has been of great service to the com- munity. At nine o'clock on Sunday morning it was rung to tell
* Mann's Annals of Dedham.
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the townspeople that it was time to prepare to start for meeting. In that day no one "attended church" but "went to meeting". At ten the bell was rung again and five minutes before service time it was tolled to announce that the minister was in the pulpit, and that the congregation, who in fine weather chatted socially outside, should take their seats. The bell again rang after a noon inter- mission for the afternoon service. During the week the bell was rung at noon to give notice to the people that the hour of midday rest and refreshment had come for man and beast. Again at nine o'clock in the evening its voice gave warning to all that it was time, if visiting, to go home. The bell summoned the men and boys to every town meeting, where the boys listened perhaps, to the eloquence of Fisher Ames, and were prepared to take their turn, by and by, in administering the welfare of the town. Sometimes the bell was heard at an unusual hour in a solemn ring- ing followed after an intermission by a solemn tone, and it was known that some one had passed into the unknown .* Then after a pause the tolling began again and sounded the age of the de- parted. Occasionally a sudden alarm from the bell, in the absence of a fire department, announced a fire, when the villagers left their work and hastened to the scene of the fire. The bell also gave notice of lectures and performed through the year every duty possible in calling the people together.
The glass was a constant care in the meeting house. In 1667 six residents were reimbursed, one pound and thirteen shillings, for money advanced to pay the glazier for setting glass. In 1664 Eleazer Lusher was deputed to treat with John Aldis about re- pairing the meeting house by clapboarding the walls and repair- ing seats in the east gallery and "whatever else at present may be needful".
The following was voted Nov. 20, 1671. Edw. Richards and Nathaneell Fisher are deputed and empowered to treat and con- clude a bargaine with a couper or coopers for the sale of 5000 hoope poles in the best manner they can, that money may be attayned to repayer the glasse in the meeting house and for other reparations for publike seruice.
*After many years this custom was revived by the Allin Congregational Church in the death of the pastor, when on the evening of Dec. 1. 1934 the church bell solemnly announced the passing of the Reverend George M. Butler. Again the bell was tolled, as of old, when the body was born from the meeting-house to its last resting place on Tuesday afternoon, December 4th.
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There was a strong desire for a new meeting house but on ac- count of a vacancy in the pastorate and the necessity of calling a new minister the matter was somewhat delayed. On the ques- tion whether the town would build a new meeting-house it was concluded by general consent on February 3, 1672, that the voters should bring in their votes with white corn for the affirmative and red corn for the negative, the question to be decided by the vote. The white corn was found to constitute a major part of the ballot and so the town proceeded to build a new meeting-house. The "consumation of the bargain" was left to the workmen and the dimensions of the house to the selectmen*, who, with John Fair- banks, Jonathan Fairbanks, senior, and John Aldis were made a building committee. The new meeting-house was raised on June 17, 1673. It had a cupola which rose from the center of the build- ing surmounted by a short pole which supported a weather vane. The bell was hung in a turret on the middle of the roof and rung by a rope at the middle of the floor below as seen in the old meet- ing houses in Hingham to-day.
In 1700 it was "voted to raise thirty pounds to repair the meet- ing house, half to be paid in wheat, at five shillings per bushel, rye at four, and corn at two shillings, and a day's work at two shillings."
The distinctions of rank which prevailed in England were recog- nized here in seating the congregation in the meeting-house, where the best seats were assigned, not so much by birth and rank, as by the distinction of paying the largest tax for the church sup- port. There was, however, a strict regard paid to titles, civil, mil- itary and religious, to those having them and all captains, ensigns, corporals and deacons were so mentioned when referred to. The title Mister was used in addressing or speaking of ministers as Mr. John Allin and Mr. Samuel Dexter of the Dedham Church. The title of Sir was given to the Dedham School Master. "Sir Pren- tiss began September 1700, to keep the school and is to receive £25 for the year and keeping his horse with hay and grass." In seating the third meeting-house the first choice of pews went to the highest tax payer, the second choice to the second highest and so on. Hon. Samuel Dexter had first choice, Dr. John Sprague,
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