History of Essex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. I, Part 96

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 96

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The warlike events of later years are, or should be, so familiar to every reader that any attempt at de- tails which space would allow would be far from sat- isfactory, and we must content ourselves with little more than bare allusions.

The War of 1812 was essentially a naval conflict, but there was much suffering and business depression, and above all, sharp political dissension. At times there were sudden alarms in the seaboard settlements arising from threatened descents and bombardments from the enemy's ships in the bay. The gallant con- test between the English frigate "Shannon " and the American frigate " Chesapeake," on the 1st of June, 1813, was witnessed by crowds of the people of Lynn, who not only climbed the hills, but clung to the house- tops. And when the American flag was seen to strike,

many a sorrowful eye wasturned away. Watch stations were established upon several heights, and two or three alarms occurred which hastily called out the soldiery and excited the people, but no serious con- flict took place.

Soon after the close of the first quarter of the pres- ent century the military interest began to fall into popular disrepute. It had, indeed from the frequency of exercise required and other exactions, become quite burdensome. The opposition developed especially in the shape of ridicule. And had it not been for the saving efforts of the uniformed or, as they were called, the volunteer companies, it is hard to tell where the matter would have ended. There were at this time three handsomely uniformed and well- drilled companies,-namely, the Lynn Artillery, or- ganized in 1808; the Light Infantry, organized in 1812; and the Rifle Company, organized in 1818.

Sometimes totally unfit persons were designedly elected as officers, and the district " companies of the line" at times amounted to little more than tattered and jeering assemblages. One man who was elected an officer in a West Lynn company is well remem- bered. He was a fellow of good information and bright wit, but extremely low habits. For a supply of liquor he could be induced to play in any role. On a certain parade day he appeared mounted on a gaunt roadster wrapped in a long cloak decorated profusely with conspicuous and ridiculous badges. And so he capered around as long as he could retain his seat. Yet the fires of patriotism had by no means been extinguished, for every one saw the necessity of a properly organized militia. The disaffection was only towards the existing requirements. And the re- sult of the popular manifestations was a radical change in the laws. And from that time to this the laws have been modified as circumstances required.

The Seminole or, as it was often called, the Florida War, commenced in 1835 and continued nearly eight years. It cost the United States some ten million dollars and several thousand lives. There were ro- mantic as well as bloody features pertaining to this war. Its precipitating cause seems to have been some indignities offered the wife of Osceola, a chief of the Seminoles. He was the son of an English trader who married the daughter of a chief, and was of a most determined and persistent character. So pro- longed was the war that the people became very im- patient, and with their complaints and censures min- gled ridicule, notwithstanding some of the best and bravest army officers were detailed for the service. A sharpshooting poet in 1839 thus delivered himself :

"Ever since the creation, By the best calculation, The Florida War has been raging ; And 'tis our expectation That the last conflagration Will find us the same contest waging !"

Perhaps the incident in the Seminole War that

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most nearly touched the people of Lynn was the loss of Robert R. Mudge, a young officer, promising and much beloved. He was a son of Benjamin Mudge, a native of Lynn and for many years one of her most prominent citizens. Lieutenant Mudge graduated at the West Point Military Academy in 1833, and in 1835 was ordered to Florida to take part in the Sem- inole War as lieutenant under Major Dade. He was killed at Withlacoochie, together with the whole company of one hundred and seventeen, with the ex- ception of three.

The Mexican War commenced in 1846. Lynn fur- nished twenty volunteers, no special call being made.

In 1832 the threats of revolt in South Carolina and her apparent determination to break the integrity of the Uuion, the zeal and oratorical vigor of her states- men, the drilling of her troops, all tended to create serious apprehension in every quarter. And had it not been for the unflinching determination of Presi- dent Jackson, his warnings and declarations, espec- ially as embodied in his famous proclamation, there is little doubt that a rebellion would then have been precipitated. But that extremity was reserved for the next generation. And it came.

The history of the great Rebellion, the first overt act of which was the bombardment of Fort Sumter on the 12th of April, 1861, is so familiar that we need only refer to a few facts specially pertaining to Lynn. In five hours after President Lincoln's first requisi- tion for troops arrived Lynu had two full companies armed and ready for duty. And early the next day, April 16th, they departed to meet the foe. The two companies formed a part of the Eighth Massachusetts Regiment, and were Company D, the Lyun Light Infantry, commanded by Captain George T. Newhall, and Company F, commanded by Captain James Hud- son, Jr. The regimental officers belonging to Lynn were Timothy Munroe, colonel; Edward W. Hinks, lieutenant-colonel; Ephraim A. Ingalls, quartermas- ter ; Roland G. Usher, paymaster ; Bowman B. Breed, surgeon ; Warren Tapley, assistant surgeon ; Horace E. Munroe, quartermaster sergeant. Many volunteers stood ready and would have gone had there been time for equipment. Company D marched off with sixty privates, and Company F with seventy-six. The zeal thus early kindled did not abate during the whole war. Every call for troops was quickly and fully re- sponded to, and everything done that could add to the comfort of the brave ones upon the field. Lynn furnished three thousand two hundred and seventy- four soldiers, which was two hundred and thirty more than her full quota. Enthusiastic war meetings were from time to time held. And the principal vic- tories were celebrated by the ringing of bells, by bon- fires and other joyful demonstrations. Many of her

gallant sons fell on the field ; others lost their lives by diseases contracted during the campaigns, and still others have passed away in the common course of na- ture since the alarms of war have ceased. Many peacefully lie in the Soldiers' Lot in the beautiful Pine Grove Cemetery, while others rest in more se- cluded sepulchres, or with their fathers in the older burial-places, their graves being strewn on every re- turning " Memorial Day" with fresh flowers by sur- viving comrades and loving kindred. By far the greater number, however, still sleep upon the battle- field. A stately Soldiers' Monument was erected in City Hall Square in 1873. It is an allegorical and classic work of art in bronze, cast at Munich, in Ba- varia, and cost $30,000.

The Grand Army of the Republic in Lynn .- Gen. Lander Encampment, Post 5, is said to be the largest in the country. But its ranks are thinning out as member after member is drafted into that army which marches on with ceaseless step, and knows no coun- termarch.

As population increases, the laws governing our State military affairs are constantly undergoing changes, and it would be useless to attempt here any- thing like a historical account of the alterations even during the last forty years. The organizations have come to be essentially voluntary rather than compul- sory. And the people have never been backward in sanctioning the most liberal provision for the disci- pline and comfort of her soldiery.

Our present military organizations are the Light Infantry (Company D) and the Wooldredge Cadets (Company I), both in high repute. There is also the Lynn City Guards Veteran Association.

It is quite within the recollection of the writer that the newspaper reader often saw at the close of an obituary notice the phrase " He was a soldier of the Revolution." But it is never seen at this day. It is said that the last person to whom a pension was paid on account of the Revolutionary War died at Wood- stock, N. H., early in 1887, at the age of ninety-seven. She was a widow by the name of Abigail S. Tilton. Is it not a solemn thought that all of the brave ones who fought for our liberties at that trying period have lain down to that prolonged rest from which they will be aroused only by the sound of the trumpet that summons them and all of us for final review and in- spection ? And is it not, too, a solemn thought that the remnant of the Grand Army of our day, who took the field for the maintenance of those liberties, are fast joining the throng of their martial fathers ? A few years more, and the last soldier will have marched away, and the "Grand Army of the Republic" sur- vive in memory only as a vestige of the heroism of the past.

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CHAPTER XVIII. LYNN-(Continued).

BURIAL-PLACES.

The Old Burying-Ground, with Epitaphs and Notices of Some Who Lic There-Other Burial-Places and Cemeteries-Memorial Day-Ancient Funeral Customs.

" The cold dark grave-there is no care, No pain nor gloom, Within the tomb ; The wicked crase from troubling thers."

" IT is wise for us to recur to the history of our an- cestors. Those who do not look upon themselves as a link connecting the past with the future, in the transmission of life from their ancestors to their pos- terity-do not perform their duty to the world. To be faithful to ourselves, we must keep our ancestors and posterity within reach and grasp of our thoughts and affections-living in the memory and retrospection of the past, and hoping with affection and care for those who are to come after us. We are true to ourselves only when we act with becoming pride for the blood we inherit, and which we are to transmit to those who shall soon fill our places." So wrote Daniel Webster, and who will not subscribe to its truthfulness and wisdom ? No apology is needed for the introduc- tion of an extended notice of the burial-places of Lynn, for such consecrated grounds always possess a touch- ing interest -- to the old, because there lie the departed kindred and friends of earlier years ; to the young, because there they see, fast gathering around, the loved ones from the broken household and the charmed circle of glad companionship. In these often-shunned retreats lie those who have made the history of the place; and who could be more worthy than they of grateful remembrance ?

One of the first objects in commencing a settlement was to select a suitable place for the burial of the dead, as all realize that such a place will surely be needed, whatever other seeming necessities may be dispensed with. True, the dead would rest just as quietly by the stony wayside or in the weedy bog, as in a flowery bed or beneath a marble monument; but to the sorrowing kindred there is something repugnant in thinking of them as resting in a dreary, uncared- for spot. The Indians, even, had great regard for the remains of their departed ancestors; and woe betide the daring enemy who would desecrate the rude ne- cropolis upon the sunny hillside.

But yet with what different feelings do the living think of the last resting-place they are destined to occupy. Some would lie in a sequestered spot, where the soothing dirge of sighing trees is ever heard ; some would lie on the ocean shore, where the spent waves murmur a ceaseless lament ; some would lie in the art-adorned cemetery, whither the steps of pensive wanderers may tend at thoughtful hours ; some would

lie in the centre of the busy life they loved so well, but which no longer can disturb or charm; and some would have their mortal remains dissolved in the cru- cible of cremation. Says Jolin Anster :

" If I might choose where my tired limbs shall lie When my task here is done, the oak's green crest Shall rise above my grave-a little mound Raised in some cheerful village cemetery. And I could wish that with unceasing sound A lonely mountain rill was murmuring by In music through the long soft twilight hour, And let the hand of her whom I love best Plant round the bright, green grave those fragrant flowers In whose deep bells the wild bee loves to rest. And should the robin from some neighboring trco Pour his enchanted song-Oh ! softly tread, For sure if anght of earth can soothe the dead, He still must love that pensive melody."

And then our own Lewis pleadingly enjoins :

" O, bury me not in the dark old woods, Where the sunbeams never shine ; Where mingles the mist of the mountain floods With the dew of the dismal pine ! Bnt bury me deep hy the bright blus sea, I have loved in life so well ;

Where the winds may come to my spirit fres, And the sound of the ocean shell.

" O, hnry me not in the churchyard old, In the shme of the doleful tomb ! Where my bones may he thrust, ere their life is cold, To the damp of a drearier gloom ! But bury me deep by the bright blue sea, Where the friends whom I love have been ; Where the sun may shine on the grass turf free, And the rains keep it ever green ! "

And thus sings Beattie :

" Let vanity adorn the marble tomb With trophies, rhymes, and scutcheons of renown : Mins be the breezy hill that skirts the down ; Where a green grassy turf is all I crave With here and there a violet bestrown, Fast by a brook or fountain's murmuring wave; And many an evening sun shine sweetly ou my grave."

The early settlers, with most nnaccountable irrever- ence, had little regard for the resting-places of their dead, often allowing rank weeds and brambles to flourish, and wandering animals to roam at will over the reserved acres. Whittier allndes to this in these touching lines :

" Our vales are sweet with fern and rose, Our hills are maple-crowned ; But not from them our fathers choss The village burying-ground.

" The dreariest spot in all the land To death they set apart ; With scanty grace from Nature's hand, And none from that of art."

But these later generations of their children have in a measure atoned for their strange remissness by consecrating beautiful cemeteries, in which sometimes appear monuments so costly and decorative that the mind is liable to be led from meditation on the vir- tues of those they commemorate to admiration of them as works of art or disapprobation of them as monuments of ostentation and extravagance.

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THE OLD BURYING-GROUND of Lynn is in the westerly part of the city. It is not known with cer- tainty when the first interments were made there. The stones are no certain index, for the oldest one bears the date 1698, and multitudes must have been buried there before that time. There rest the early fathers and mothers of the place, and many whose talents and virtuous deeds made them conspicuous in their own day and generation.

The first burial in this ancient place, so far as is certainly known, was in 1637, when the remains of John Bancroft, ancestor of the distinguished histo- rian and statesman, George Bancroft, were laid there. And it was on the 1st of April, 1687, that the remains of Thomas Newhall, the first white person born in Lynn, was buried there. He had died at the age of fifty-seven years. The oldest stone bears this inscrip- tion : "Here lyeth ye body of Iohn Clifford. Died Iune ye 17, 1698, in ye 68 year of his age." The fig- ure nine, by some sacrilegious intruder, was, eighty years ago, altered in a rough way, so as to resemble a two, and that has led some to the erroneous belief that there was a burial here as early as 1628.

For some two centuries no complete record of in- terments here seems to have been kept, but since the law so required, the town and city clerks have been faithful in recording.

Mr. John T. Moulton, a worthy native, a few years since had all the inscriptions copied and published in the Peabody Institute Collections,-a labor of love for which he is deserving of the highest commenda- tion.

A few of the epitaphs in this ancient gathering- place of the dead will be given ; but it will be borne in mind that it very often happens that the name of one of the most worthy and useful is not so perpetu- ated, while that of another, whose memory elieits no sentiment of reverence, is blazoned on a pompous monument. It should be horne in mind, too, that many, inspired by ardent love for their native place, were overtaken by the fell destroyer when far away, never again to meet those of their generation till the sea gives up her dead.

Churchyard lore is not usually very refined in die- tion, however tender in sentiment, and the simple, unlettered record is sometimes more touching than the studied and stately. But a countless multitude, of whose names even there is no record, are there at rest, among them, perhaps, "some mute, inglorious Milton," or some heroic Washington. Certainly a host of the godly men and women of the early days are sleeping there, to be aroused only at the last trumpet's sound; and theirs must be the brightest dreams, should dreams come in that night of een- turies.

" Sure the last end

Of the good man is peace. Ilow calm his exit ! Night dews fall not more gently on the ground Nor weary, worn-out winds explro so soft."

The few epitaphs for which space can be afforded in this connection will, for convenience, be arranged alphabetically.

" In memory of Rov. Thomas F. Alexander, pastor of the Second Chris- tian Church in Lynn, who died April 2, 1838, aged 23 years.

"Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints .- Ps. 116, 15. " O Church ! to whom this youth was dear, The angel of thy mercy here, Behold the path he trod.

A milky way through midnight skiee ; Behold the grave in which he lies ; Even from this day thy Pastor cries Prepare to meet thy God."

Few ever had the capacity to so win the esteem of the young people of his generation as did this youth- ful clergyman. He possessed uncommon talents and an uncommonly felicitous way of expressing his views and convictions. He mingled freely with those of all denominations, was neither bigoted nor heter- odox, and his early death was deeply felt as a serious loss to the community.

"In memory of Mr. Zachariah Atwill, who died November 6, 1836. Æt, 81.

"Mark the perfect man and hehold the upright, for the end of that man is peace."

Mr. Atwill was a Revolutionary soldier. At one time he lived in the ancient house that stood on the centre of the Common, a little west of the pond, but now stands on the easterly side of Whiting Street and which is the oldest building in Lynn of which the date of erection is positively known. It was built in 1682 for the residence of the parish sexton. Mr. At- will kept the almshouse for many years before its re- moval, in 1819, from the corner of Essex and Chest- nut Streets to Tower Hill. A son of his, Zachariah, Jr., was a sea captain, and, it is said, crossed the At- lantie some fifty times without the loss of a seaman.

"Here lyes ye body of Mr. Thomas Baker, who died October yo 3d 1734, aged 81 years."

Mr. Baker was drafted November 13, 1675, to serve in King Philip's War, and was in the Narragansett fight. In 1694 he was a member of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery, and is spoken of more at large in other pages of this sketch.

"In memory of Amos Ballard (son of Mr. John Ballard, of Boston), who was deprived of his life by the accidental discharge of a musket in a canoe in Lynn River, on the 25th of August, 1798. ÆEtat 77.

" The grave hath eloquence, its lectures teach In silence louder than divines can preach ; Hear what it says, ye sons of folly, hear; It speaks to you ; lend au attontive ear. "

" In memory of Mr. Josiah Breed, who died December 12, 1790, in the 50th year of his age.

" Death is a debt to nature duo ; Which I havo paid, and so must you."

" ITere lyes buried yo body uf Doct Henry Burchsted, a Silesian, who died Septbr xx, Anno Christi, MDCCXXI. Etatis Snæ LXIIII.

"Silesia to New England sent this man, To do their all that any healer can,

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But he who conquered all diseases must Find one who throws him down into the dust A chymist near to an adeptist come, Leaves here, thrown by his caput mortuum Reader, physiciaos die as others do ; Prepare, for thou to this urt hasteving too."

"My widow'd mother, My ouly earthly friend, Erected this monument To tell each traveller, Who looks this way, That underneath this stoue Rests the ashes of her only son, Josiah Burrage, who died Dec. 13th, 1797, Aged 21 years.

Oft do we see the tender bud of hope, Opening its beauties to the morning light, When lo! a frost cuts down the tender plant, And levels all our prospects with the dust."

"Here lyes buried the body of the Honorable John Burrill, Esq , who died Decembr 10th Anoo Christi, MDCCXXI. Etatis LXIV.

" Alas ! our patron's dead ! the country-court- The church-io tears, all echo the report ; Grieved that no piety, no mastering seuse, No counsel, gravity, no eloquence, No generous temper, gravitating to Those houors, which they did upon him throw, Could stay his fate, or their dear Burrill save From a contagious sickness and the grave, The adjacent towos this loss reluctant bear, But widowed Lyon sustains the greatest share : Yet joys io being guardian of his dust Uotil the resurrection of the just."

The residence of Mr. Burrill was on the western slope of Tower Hill, and there he died, leaving no children. The . "contagious sickness " which proved fatal was small-pox. He was well known throughout the province, was much in public life, and sustained a high reputation as a legislator. He was ten years Speaker of the House, and greatly respected for his ability and urbanity in conducting public business.

"In memory of Mr. Thomas Cheever, a soldier of the Revolution, who died Jao. 28, 1823, Æt. 90.

" Receive, O earth, his faded form, In thy cold bosom let it lie, Safe let it rest from every storm, Soon must it rise, 00 more to die."

"The Rev. Joshoa W. Dowoing, A. M. Died July 15, 1839, aged 26."

Mr. Downing was one of Lynn's most promising young men. He was a son of Elijah Downing, a cabi- net-maker, who lived on North Common Street, corner of Park. He graduated at Brown University, and at first intended to pursue the profession of law, but becoming converted, he joined the Methodist Confer- ence, and soon became one of the most acceptable preachers in the denomination, insomuch that at the time of his decease he was in charge of one of the oldest and most opulent churches of the order in New England,-the Bromfield Street Church, in Boston.

"This monument is inscribed to the memory of John Flagg, Esq., in whom remarkable temperaoce, uniform prudence, nuaffected modesty, affectionate humanity and diffusive benevolence ehode conspicuous among the virtnes which graced his character, endeared him to hie family and friends, and secured him the respect and love of all who had the happiness to koow him.

"As a physiciao, his skill was eminent, and his practice extensive and successful.

"To Death, whose triumph he had so often delayed and repelled, but could not entirely preveut, he at last himself submitted on the 27th of May, 1793, io the 50th year of his age.

"Heav'n uow repays his virtuee and his deeds, And endless life the stroke of death succeeds."

Dr. Flagg graduated at Cambridge in 1761, and eight years after settled as a physician in Lynn, where he soon, by his integrity, affability and skill, won the esteem and confidence of all. He was active and pa- triotic during the trying Revolutionary period, was a member of the Committee of Safety in 1775, and com- missioned as a colonel. Dr. James Gardner, for many years a public-spirited and highly-respected practitioner here, married his only daughter. Dr. Flagg lived at the eastern end of Marion Street, in the same house in which the famous merchant, Wil- liam Gray, was born some twenty years before.

"George Gray, the Lynn Hermit, a native of Scotland, died at Lynn, Feb. 28, 1848, aged 78 years."

This eccentric individual lived alone for many years in what was, at the time of his appearance, a retired and forlorn retreat, little better than a bram- bly bog, though near a public road. Further notice of him appears elsewhere.

"This monument is erected to the memory of Mr. Samuel Hart, son of Mr. Joseph & Eunice Hart. Obt. July 18, 1802, ÆEt. 24.

" Farewell to friends, to science & to time, God bids me leave you all, though in my prime, Pareots, mouro not, though I'm the fourth young son That God hath culled, he still doth leave you one, Grieve not for me, but for the living grieve, "Tis they who die, it is the dead who live."

The writer of this sketch well remembers hearing in early childhood, a sister of the deceased often speak in the most affectionate terms of his lovely character, especially of his amiability. He seems to have been ambitious of leaving the toilsome occupa- tion of farmer, and preparing for usefulness in some learned profession, and was a student-in Harvard College, it is believed-at the time of his death. The family greatly mourned his loss, and the whole neigh- borhood partook in the sorrow. The epitaph refers to three brothers who had gone before him, leaving him the last but one of all the sons of the stricken parents. The epitaphs of these three follow, and they are all uncommonly impressive in sentiment and tenderly expressed :

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History of Essex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. I, Part 96

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