History of Essex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. I, Part 68

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton), ed. n 85042884-1
Publication date: 1888
Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1538

USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > History of Essex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. I > Part 68

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).

A donation of books from Mr. Oliver Parsons, in April, 1820, laid the foundation of the library be- longing to this institution. A committee was then appointed to solicit contributions, and in July of that year the number of volumes amounted to three hun- dred. In January, 1821, Mr. Benjamin Pickman pre- sented a complete set of Rees' Cyclopedia. From this time the library has annually increased by donations and special appropriations, and at present nunfbers five thousand one hundred and twenty-five volumes. It is deposited in the middle eastern room under the Mechanic Hall, and is opened on Saturday evenings for the delivery of books. This institution early adopted the plan of having popular lectures on liter- ature and science delivered to the members and their families. The first lecture was delivered by Dr. George Choate on Thursday evening, January 24, 1828, in Franklin Hall. These lectures were contin- ued weekly, usually on Thursday evenings, during the winter season, for about thirty-eight years. They have since been delivered in their rooms, Derby Square, then Washington Hall, Lyceum Hall and Mechanic's Hall.

This association was instrumental in the building of Mechanics' Hall, in 1839. A stock company was incorporated for this purpose, in which the association invested a portion of its funds, the remainder of the stock being taken by the Salem Lyceum and the members and friends of the association. In 1870 it was enlarged and entirely remodelled, in its present condition.

In September, 1849, its first meeting was held in the above-named building. It was very successful and creditable to the Board of Managers and all who were interested in its success.

The first exhibition under the auspices of the gov- ernment of the association was held at the Mechanic's Hall, Salem, commencing on Monday September 24, 1849. A good representation of the products of our varied industries was arranged upon the tables mak- ing a very creditable appearance. Forty-four medals and fifty-two diplomas were awarded by the judges.

ODD FELLOWSHIP.1-The exact date of the origin of Odd Fellowship in Massachusetts is not known. The first lodge, self-instituted and without a charter, held its sessions in Boston. No records of its early meetings were preserved. On the 26th of March,

1 By Daniel B. Hagar.

181

SALEM.

1820, it was organized by the choice of officers, the adoption of a name, and of laws for its government, and the commencement of a record of its proceedings. It was instituted under the name of Massachusetts Lodge, No. 1. On the 11th of March, 1823, Siloam Lodge, No. 2, was instituted. On the 28th of March, Massachusetts Lodge wrote to the Grand Lodge of Maryland, recognizing it as the Grand Lodge of the order in the United States, and asking for a charter to be granted to it as the Grand Lodge of Massachu- setts. The request was granted, and the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts was duly organized June 9, 1823.

The growth of the order in Massachusetts was not rapid, and after a few years it became nearly extinct. Prior to 1832 seven lodges had been instituted, all of which had at that time ceased to exist, Merrimac Lodge, No. 7, being the last to give up. The Grand Lodge of the State died with the subordinate lodges. In 1883 Merrimac Lodge was revived, and was placed under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of the United States. On the 22d of June, 1841, Massachusetts Lodge, No. 1, was reorgan- ized. By request of these two lodges, the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts was reinstated December 23, 1841. From this time the growth of the order was encouraging. Within two years the number of lodges increased to twenty-five. Between 1850 and 1860 there was a period of decleusion in the pros- perity of the order in Massachusetts. Since 1860 the order has rapidly grown in numbers and influence, until it has come to be recognized as the leading ben- eficial order in the commonwealth. The present number of lodges is one hundred and ninety-one; the number of members, according to the last report, August, 1887, is thirty-four thousand six hundred and sixty-two.

The organization of the order includes the Grand Lodge, the Subordinate Lodges, the Grand Encamp- ment, Subordinate Encampments, Cantons of Patri- archs Militant, and Lodges of the Daughters of Re- bekah.

Essex Lodge, No. 26 .- On the 20th of October, 1843, the first step was taken towards establishing a lodge of Odd Fellows in Salem. Adrien Low, G. D. Lyons, William Durant, Thomas Harvey and C. C. Hayden met at the house of Mr. Low, and, after de- liberation, determined to apply to the Grand Lodge for a charter for Essex Lodge, No. 26, I. O. O. F. The charter was granted, and on the evening of No- vember 6, 1843, the grand officers duly instituted the lodge and installed its officers. The officers were,- N. G., Thomas Durant; V. G., C. C. Hayden ; Secre- tary, George Russell; Treasurer, Adrien Low ; W., W. Merrill; C., B. F. Steadman ; I. G., T. E. Page; R. S. N. G., T. Harvey ; L. S. N. G., J. Kimball ; R. S. V. G., N. Goldsmith; L. S. V. G., W. Saunders ; R. S. S., W. R. Allen ; L. S. S., I. T. Kimball ; Chap., I. P. Atkinson.

The lodge at once entered upon a very prosperous career.

At the close of the year 1844, it numbered one hundred and thirty-four members, and January 1, 1849, five years and two months from its organization, it numbered three hundred and fifty-seven mem - bers. The whole number of members from its forma- tion to the present time is nine hundred and twenty- five ; of these one hundred and thirty-seven have died. The present number is three hundred and eighty- seven. A large number of members have withdrawn from Essex Lodge to aid in establishing other lodges. It furnished three of the five charter members of Atlantic Lodge, four of the five for Oceau Lodge, and four of the five for Holton Lodge. For the or- ganization of Fraternity Lodge, it gave forty-three members ; for Bass River Lodge, thirty-one; for Magnolia Lodge, twenty-seven ; for Danvers Lodge, eleven. Essex Lodge has furnished in part the mem- bership of some fifteen lodges.

Since its organization the lodge has paid in weekly benefits to the sick, $26,580.87 ; in funeral benefits, $5826.10; in other charities, $3366.39; total, $35,- 773.36. This amount does not include frequent pri- vate subscriptions not entered on the lodge books.

The lodge has a trust fund of over $15,000, which is at present under the charge of three trustees, Rufus B. Gifford, Daniel B. Hagar and Charles H. Kezar.

The membership of the lodge has included men of every profession and almost every occupation ; many of whom have held prominent positions in city and State and in the high ranks of Odd Fellowship. One of its members, Levi F. Warren, has been Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts, and one, Rufus B. Gifford, has been Grand Patriarch of the Grand Encampment of Massachusetts, and Grand Representative to the Sovereign Lodge of the United States.

The Noble Grands of Essex Lodge, in their order of service, have been: William Durant, C. C. Hayden, James Kimball, Thomas Harvey, Adrien Low, War- ren G. Rayner, Joseph A. Goldthwait, Richard Lind- ley, Thomas H. Lefavour, George Russell, Henry Lns- comb, Benjamin S. Grush, John W. Rhoades, Walter S. Harris, Hale Hildreth, Charles E. Symonds, Alvah A. Evans, Joshua W. Moulton, Simeon Flint, Enoch K. Noyes, Robert P. Clough, E. B. Phillips, Willis S. Knowlton, Samuel B. Foster, George C. S. Choate, Benjamin S. Boardman, Charles B. Luscomb, Charles H. Manning, Samuel Fuller, Rufus B. Gifford, George W. Kingsley, Thomas Oakes, Walter Norris, James M. Brown, John R. Norfolk, Jonathan S. Symonds, Joseph Beadle, Edwin Verry, Joseph A. Kimball, Moses H. Sibley, Seth S. Currier, Joseph Swasey, Albert Day, Benjamin Edwards, Levi F. Warren, John White, William Holland, Charles Adams, Elea- zer Hathaway, Richard N. Knight, Edward E. Dal- ton, James Donaldson, William P. Hayward, Natha- niel M. Jackman, John S. Wardwell, Jr., Perry Col-

182

HISTORY OF ESSEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

lier, George M. Harris, Aaron C. Young, George H. Blinn, John F. Staniford, Joseph Batchelder, John H. Russell, Henry Conant, William D. Dennis, Wil- liam R. Tebbetts, Aaron J. Patch, William O. Arnold, Charles Babbidge, John Wilson, William P. Pous- land, George M. Gallup, Charles C. Roades, Charles B. Trumbull, Joseph N. Petersen, John E. Kimball, John E. Matthews, Frank Cousins, Benjamin A. Touret, David B. Kimball, Clarence Hayward, Howard C. Kimball, Amos J. Vincent, Robert E. Hill, Daniel B. Hagar, Arthur S. Palfray, George Z. Goodell, Warren B. Perkins, A. L. Burnham, An- drew J. Wilson.

The Secretaries have been : George Russell, James C. Briggs, Samnel B. Buttrick, Amory Holbrook, Jonathan F. Worcester, Israel D. Shepard, John G. Willis, Joseph Farnham, Franklin Grant, Benjamin S. Boardman, Charles E. Symonds, Charles B. Lus- comb, John W. Moulton and E. B. Phillips ; the last named has been secretary since I85S.

The Treasnrers have been : Adrien Low, Nathaniel Goldsmith, James Harris, E. B. Symonds, Samuel Smith, John Beadle, Jr., Rodney C. Fletcher, Robert P. Clough, Volney C. Stow, George C. S. Choate, James M. Brown, John J. Ashby, Andrew H. Lord, Charles H. Norris, John P. Langmaid, William P. Hayward and John Wilson.

The present chief officers of the lodge are : N. G., A. J. Wilson ; V. G., E. A. Reed; Secretary, E. B. Phillips ; Treasurer, John Wilson.

Fraternity Lodge, No. 118, was instituted November 13, 1847, at Lynde Hall. The charter under which the lodge exists is signed by Rev. Dr. E. H. Chapin, at that time Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts. Of the Board of Grand Officers that instituted the lodge, Judge W. E. Palmenter, now chief-justice of the Municipal Court of Suffolk County, is the only survivor.

The charter members were James Kimball, Adrien Low, Stephen Whittemore, Jr., T. H. Lefavour, George Russell, William Lummus, Jesse Smith, S. B. Buttrick, Ephraim Annible, William Saunders, B. R. White, Gardner Barton, John Barlow, Joseph Hunt, James Harris, Jr., Nathaniel Wiggin, Alexander McCloy, C. B. Elwell, Alva Kendall, John Lovejoy, John G. Willis, Franklin Grant, William Brown, Joseph Farnum, S. O. Dalrymple, Jonathan Perley, George W. Pease, Jonathan F. Worcester and D. C. Haskell.

The first board of officers were James Kimball, N. G .; Stephen Whittemore, V. G .; Jonathan F. Worcester, Sec .; Thomas H. Lefavour, Treas, ; Frank- lin Grant, W .; William Brown, C .; John Lovejoy, 1. G .; E. Annible, O.G .; Joseph Farnum, R.S. N. G .; S. O. Dalrymple, L.S. N. G .; C. B. Elwell, R.S. V. G .; Alva Kendall, L. S. V. G .; Jonathan Perley, R. S. S .; George W. Pease, L. S. S .; Trustees, S. B. Buttrick, Jesse Smith and James Harris, Jr.

These brothers were all active members of the

order : Messrs. Kimball, Low, Whittemore, Lefavour and Russell having been at the head of Essex Lodge, of Salem, and many others having held other positions in that lodge.

The lodge inaugurated an entirely new arrange- ment of the system of dnes and benefits. The Grand Lodge of Massachusetts endorsed and especially com- mended the system of Fraternity Lodge, and it has been substantially adopted by all Odd-Fellows' Lodges in the country.

Of the twenty-nine original members, nine are now living (July 1, 1887), and in active membership, hav- ing held continuous membership more than forty years; all the other charter members are dead.

The Noble Grands of this Lodge, in regular order, have heen James Kimball, Stephen Whittemore, Jr., Joseph Farnum, Jonathan F. Worcester, Benja- min Whittemore, I. D. Shepard, George H. Pearson, Jonathan Perley. S. O. Dalrymple, William Brown, H. E. Jocelyn, H. E. Meloney, Alva Kendall, E. C. Webster, William B. Brown, F. H. Lefavour, C. B. Elwell, Charles Estes, William B. Ashton, John R. Smith, N. A. Horton; George L. Upton, Joseph J. Rider, T. H Lefavour, William M. Hill, Richard Harrington, T. M. Dix, W. H. Caulfield, C. D. Stiles, Charles Odell, A. J. Lowd, J. W. Averell, Joseph L. Lougee, C. H. Ingalls, Edward F. Brown, T. B. Nichols, N. A. Very, R. W. Reeves, G. C. Fernald, John P. Tilton, J. A. Hill, William Harmon, Charles B. Fowler, B. L. Morrill, B. M. Kenney, George H. Hill, Jesse Robbins, W. D. Gardner, W. G. Ham- mond, Samuel C. Beane, A. J. Tibbets, W. L. Welch, Charles Phelps, James A. Evans, J. R. Lambirth, W. A. Upton, F. A. Newell, C. H. Harwood, David Allen, William Meade, Joseph A. Sibley, E. W. Woodman, I. G. Taylor, Edward Mitchell, John M. Raymond, E. O. Richards, W. S. Nevins, A. B. Fowler, A. W. Batchelder, H. C. Strout, George W. Burnham, J. D. H. Gaus, George Putney, Fred. Tibbets.

The secretaries, in regular order, have been Jona- than F. Worcester, Richard Gardner, I. D. Shepard, Daniel T. Smith, William Archer, Jr., H. E. Meloney, Joseph J. Rider, T. H. Lefavour, N. A. Horton, Wil- liam M. Hill, Joseph L. Lougee, C. HI. Ingalls, J. P. Tilton, C. B. Fowler, J. W. Averell, J. A. Hill, A. J. Lowd.

The treasurers have been T. H. Lefavour, I. D. Shepard, A. B. Keith, James A. Wallis, George R. Buffum, T. M. Dix, Joseph Farnum, Joseph L. Lougee.

The present trustees of funds are William M. Hill, George Russell, N. A. Very, C. B. Fowler, E. F. Brown.

The present number of members is three hundred and twenty; fifty-nine members have died. The lodge has paid for relief of members, $12,544.67; for burial of the dead, $2640; for other charitable pur- poses, $2376. The lodge has remaining a large fund for relief.

183

SALEM.

An examination of the list of members of this lodge, in its forty years of history, shows that its members have been among the most prominent citi- zens of Salem. Two have filled the position of mayor of the city, thirteen have served as aldermen, five have served as president of the Common Council, sixty-four as members of the Common Council, and others in many prominent public positions in State, county and municipal affairs.

In the order itself the members of this lodge have been highly honored. Nathaniel A. Very has served as Grand Patriarch of the Grand Encampment of Massachusetts, and William M. Hill has served as Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts; and other members have filled many important posi- tions in the Grand Encampment and the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts.

Naumkeag Encampment, No. 13, I. O. O. F .- The Naumkeag Encampment was organized June 26, 1845. Its members are connected with various sub- ordinate lodges including Essex, Fraternity, Holton, Bass River, Agawam, Ocean, Hoekomoco, Asylum, Me., and Boston. The large majority of the members belong to Essex and Fraternity Lodges. The present number of members is three hundred and fifteen. Fifty-three of its members have died.

Its first officers were : C. P., William Archer, Jr .; H. P., Benjamin H. Grush; S. W., Israel D. Shepard; J. W., John C. Howard; Secretary, Samuel B. Foster; Treasurer, William Saunders, Jr.

The present officers are: C. P., William A. Saun- ders ; H. P., C. C. Rhoades; S. W., Andrew J. Wil- son; J. W., Edward N. Reed; Secretary, E. B. Phillips; Treasurer, J. Archer Hill. The trustees of its fund are Samuel A. Potter, Aaron C. Young and James Buxton.

The Chief Patriarchs, in the order of their service, have been: William Archer, Jr., Samuel B. Foster, Franklin Grant, John C. Howard, Walter S. Harris, James Kimball, Jonathan Perley, Jr., Jefford M. Decker, Stephen Whitmore, Joseph Farnum, Jr., John White, Robert P. Clough, James H. Conway, Edward C. Webster, Alva A. Evans, E. B. Phillips, Isaac Young, Simeon Flint, Andrew H. Lord, Rufus B. Gifford, Nicholas Woodbury, John R. Smith, An- drew F. Wales, B. W. Standley, Richard L. Woodfin, Thomas Oakes, William A. Foster, John R. Norfolk, Joseph J. Rider, Thomas W. Webber, George M. Hildreth, Moses H. Sibley, Joseph Swasey, Simon Lamprell, John E. Davis, Daniel F. Staten, Eleazer Giles, Caleb Prentiss, Jr., Ezra Stanley, John Conway, Jr., William M. Smith, T. D. Hanners, N. A. Very, Abram A. Fiske, Charles H. Ingalls, Charles F. Wil- kins, Charles B. Fowler, Andrew J. Tibbetts, Aaron C. Young, George H. Blinn, Jr., William D. Gardner, William O. Arnold, James W. Averell, Joseph N. Peterson, N. M. Jackman, George M. Harris, Frank Cousins, S. Augustus Stodder, Wesley K. Bell, Edward F. Brown, F. A. Newell, Albert Day, Jr., John Wil- D. Bliss.

son, George W. Ingalls, William E. Mead, Andrew J. Lord, George W. Grant, Fred. J. Gifford, Arthur S. Palfray, Arthur R. Millett, C. D. Bliss, J. O. Buxton, Robert E. Hill, A. J. Vinceut, J. K. Saunders.

Salem Encampment, No. 11, I. O. O. F .- The Salem Encampment was organized January 1, 1884, with fifty-eight charter members. Since that time fifty- eight members have been initiated, making the total number one hundred and sixteen. Of these, one has died and one has been dropped, leaving the present number one hundred and fourteen.

The Chief Patriarchs, in the order of service, have been : William E. Mead, George Millett, John M. Raymond, Otis Burnham, I. G. Taylor, W. P. Pouss- land, W. H. Dayton, E. M. Carpenter.

The present leading officers are: C. P., E. M, Car- penter; H. P., J. F. Lovejoy; S. W., A. M. Batch- elder; J. W., W. L. Nevens; Secretary, A. J. Lowd ; Treasurer, W. D. Dennis.

This Encampment pays for sick benefits one dollar per week ; for funeral benefits, fifty dollars.

Union Lodge, Daughters of Rebekah, No. 11, I. O. 0. F .- Union Lodge of the Daughters of Rebekah was instituted April 12, 1870. Sixty-nine charter members were present at its first meeting, mostly from Essex Lodge.

Its first officers were, N. G., Eleazer Hathaway ; V. G., Eliza A. Ingalls ; Recording Secretary, Charles H. Ingalls ; Permanent Secretary, Sarah H. Baker ; Treasurer, Margaret J. Robinson.

The present membership consists of seventy-nine brothers and ninety-two sisters.

The present officers are, N. G., Amos J. Vincent ; V. G., Eliza A. Iugalls; Recording Secretary, E. B. Phillips; Permanent Secretary, Lulu H. Graham; Treasurer, Lydia A. Tyler.

Patriarchs Militant, I. O. O. F .- Canton Unity, No. 5, Patriarchs Militant, I. O. O. F., was instituted Jannary 6, 1883, as Unity Uniformed Degree Camp, No. 5, with twenty-seven charter members. The offi- cers installed were, Commander, George H. Blinn ; Vice-Commander, Walter J. Norris ; Officer of the Guard, William O. Arnold ; Secretary, John Wilson ; Treasurer, Samuel A. Potter. Among the charter members were Nathaniel A. Very, Past Grand Rep- resentative, and William M. Hill, then Mayor of Salem.

The camp grew in a short time to one hundred and thirty-five members, taking its membership from Sa- Jem, Beverly, Ipswich, Gloncester, Danvers, Peabody, Marblehead and Lynn.

On the 12th of February, 1886, Unity Camp was merged into a canton, taking the name Grand Canton Unity, No. 5, P. M., I. O. O. F. It consisted of three component cantons, numbered 13, 14 and 15. The officers of the new organization were :

No. 13. Captain and Commandant. Arthur S. Pal- fray ; Lieutenant, Charles F. Wilkins; Ensign, Chas.

18-1

HISTORY OF ESSEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

No. 14. Captain, William W. Pinder; Lieutenant, Charles W. Wallis; Ensign, George O. Tarbox.

No. 15. Captain, John Karcher; Lieutenant, Wil- liam E. Luscomb ; Ensign, Horace A. Roberts. .

Clerk of Grand Canton, John Wilson ; Accountant, Samuel A. Potter.

The canton made a creditable appearance in the parade on the 22d of September, 1886, given in hon- or of the Sovereign Grand Lodge, at Boston. It turned out the largest number of any canton in the line.

Many of the most prominent men of Essex County are members of the canton.

Its present officers arc :

No. 13. Captain and Commandant, Fred. J. Gif- ford, of Salem; Lieutenant, George H. Stickney, of Salem ; Ensign, A. S. Edwards, of Beverly.

No. 14. Captain, Arthur R. Millett, of Salem ; Lieutenant, W. G. Hussey, of Salem ; Ensign, Ed- ward N. Reed, of Salem.

No. 15. Captain, John E. Graham, of Salem ; Lieu- tenant, John O. Buxton, of Peabody ; Ensign, Joseph C. Shepherd, of Gloucester; Clerk, John Wilson ; Accountant, Henry C. Millett. Cantons pay no ben- efits, its objects being social.

Odd Fellows' Burial-Ground .- A joint committee consisting of Brothers Walter H. Harris, Alvah A. Evans and Nathaniel M. Jackman, of Essex Lodge, and Brothers G. C. Fernald, William M. Hill and Nathaniel A. Very, of Fraternity Lodge, purchased eight lots in what was then known as the Orne Street Cemetery, since called Green Lawn Cemetery. The price paid was $218.40, each lodge paying one-half that amount.

This purchase was made in August, 1868. In 1871 the sum of two hundred dollars was expended in grading these lots into one large lot, and putting it into a good condition. A monument was erected upon the lot in 1884, at the cost of eleven hundred and twenty-five dollars. The fund for the erection of this monument was donated by Naumkeag En- campment, the same being a part of the proceeds of a fair held by that encampment.

The monument is of granite and consists of a base and sub-base of hammered stone, a square stone upon whose several faces are the memorial inscriptions, an octagonal stone embellished with emblems of the Order, a polished column, around which is twined a vine of leaves, and upon its summit a polished globe. It is four feet five inches square at the base, and is thirteen feet high.

The lot is under the care of a joint committee, con- sisting of three brothers from each lodge.

Up to the present time, there have been fifteen in- terments in the lot ; five bodies have been removed to other lots, leaving at present ten graves, four of which represent an entire family-father, mother and two children ; one is that of a brother of a lodge in a distant part of the State ; the remainder are those of brothers belonging to the Salem Lodges.

CHAPTER XI. SALEM-(Continued).

MILITARY HISTORY.

BY CHARLES A. BENJAMIN.

UNLIKE many cities of equal historic importance, Salem is fortunate in her inability to point to a record of battles fought within her limits or sicges sustained by her. No turreted walls have enclosed her, nor, with one exception, since the precautions taken in the earliest life of the infant settlement, have her. streets been watched by sentinels or, except in peaceful parade, echoed to the tread of armed men or rumble of artillery. As her name imports, she has indeed been a city of peace, and her citizens for nearly two centuries, have, within her borders, enjoyed immunity from the scourge of war. Her fame rests upon the success of her people in the paths of commerce and mannfacture ; their devotion to science and art and a charity and large-heartedness that, accompany- ing wealth, have prevented want and made her ever the abode of comfort and plenty. But although thus given to peaceful pursuits and preserved in herself from the devastation and ruin of war, this by no means implies that Salem has not indirectly suffered from its effects, or that her men have been slow to re- spond to the demands of their country upon their pa- triotism and courage; for they have manfully borne their full part in the wars of the nation, and sus- tained its honor and that of their native town on all occasions. In every Indian skirmish, and on every smoke-wreathed field known in our history, from the taking of "Sassacus his fort" to Bunker Hill and Gettysburg, or fighting their guns on the ocean in all latitudes, have stood the men of Salem, patriotic, brave and enduring. Their blood has wet the sod from the chapparal of Mexico to the shores of the great lakes, and their shattered bones lie fathoms deep in every sea.

This, then, is the military history of Salem-not that of a Saragossa or Leipsic, shaken in her own territory with the thunder of cannon, the crash of falling walls, and the groans of the wounded and dy- ing-but steadfastly enduring in almost every cycle of her existence the departure of numbers of her best and bravest, and keeping green the memory of those who never returned, with tears, but in great honor and gratitude.

Within the limited space necessarily given in a coun- ty history to a monograph of this character, it is impos- sible to render full justice to all those whose services constitute the military record of the city, and if any for themselves or their ancestors or kindred shall feel neglected in this particular, their indulgence is re- quested on this account, and because of the sometimes scanty sources of information existing, with relation

185

SALEM.

to the connection of individuals with the warlike events of our history.

The first settlers of Salem, in common with their neighbors, landing in the wilderness and surrounded by a race of savages not numerous, but singularly ac- tive and enterprising, to whose keen, though untanght comprehension, their habits appeared objectionable and their civilization a menace, soon found that a conciliatory attitude was ineffectual to remove the suspicions of the Indians aud enable the colonists to rely upon their good faith. The Indian, once fairly committed to a friendship upon a sound basis, may be expected to keep his engagements, and is a steadfast ally. When, however, as has usually beeu the case in our history, treaties aud alliances were forced upon him as the weaker party, he fully realized the moral weakness of these compacts, and felt justified by his simple code of ethics in evading them upon the least sign of bad faith on the other side, or by simple treachery, followed by such violent efforts to as far as possible restore the proper equality of num- bers between himself and his antagonist, as made the Indian wars extremely destructive and cruel.

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.

History of Essex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. I, Part 68

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton), ed. n 85042884-1 Publication date: 1888 Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis & Co. Number of Pages: 1538

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton), ed. n 85042884-1
Publication date: 1888
Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1538