History of Essex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. II, Part 12

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed
Publication date: 1888
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1672

USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > History of Essex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. II > Part 12

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committee from time to time, as there shall be occa- sion, for carrying on that part of Divine service."

After the bell was procured, about 1720, the curfew called all to early slumbers.

Samuel Stacy was the first " bellman " of the par- ish. The title "sexton " does not appear in the old records, perhaps because the Puritans of that day thought that sexton (or as it was then and is sometimes still pronounced, "saxton" or "saxon," being a shortening of "sacristan "), savored too much of church formality. After 1750 we find the "saxsen " or "saxton " spoken of in the records.

The duties of caring for the meeting-house were very simple; no fires, no carpets, no lights, with very little paint and window glass, made the position a very simple one. At first "the widow Parnell," who lived close by, swept and garnished the meeting- house ; and there appears from time to time an arti- cle in the warrant for the parish meeting "to con- sider of paying the widdow Parnell." The commit- tee, which was formally empowered "to agree with some sutible person to sweep the meeting-house," agreed with Stacy that he was to ring the bell "every night at nine of the clock, and every Sabbath day, and to sweep the meeting-house for what the Inhabi- tance will give him." He is spoken of in 1726 as the " bell man," though that title was sometimes applied to the night watch, for in 1710 the selectmen of Sa- lem agreed with a bell man at 36s. (thirty-six shillings) per month, who was "to walk ye Streets from Ten of ye clock at Night till day light, & take care that there bee no Mischeife Done whilst people are asleep, but to doe his utmost to prevent fire, thieves, enemies or other danger." The custom of ringing the nine o'clock bell was kept up for more than a century and a half, having been discontinued in 1885.

Samuel Stacy continued to hold his office for many years; but the careful committee thought it best to ascertain how much the " Inhabitance " were giving him, and accordingly he was directed in 1731 to keep an account of what the people gave him. In 1758 and 1759 Mary Goldthwait was engaged to ring the bell and sweep the meeting-house. The bell was hung in a small belfry or " turret " over the body of the house, probably in the middle like that of the Village Meeting-house. This turret was repaired in 1740, and again in 1750, and gave place to the tower or steeple, built in 1774.

Soon after getting a bell, the parish began to feel the responsibility of their acquisition ; for we find in several warrants an article " to consider of some way to goe up to Bell or Belfrey within side of the meet- ing-house in case anything should happen to bell or rope." The gentle and insinuating suggestiveness of this article brings vividly before us the difficulty of raising money at that time. It was not till 1727 that the parish boldly voted " to make a way up to the Bell," and to raise the money for it. Indeed, the

whole history of the dealings between the parish and their minister show how scarce money was. It was customary to have a box near the entrance of the meeting-house in which strangers were expected to put some contribution, according to their means, toward the support of the worship whose privilege they enjoyed. The disposition of this fund was a grave question ; and the inhabitants were called together in April, 1713, "to consider of some way to put a conclusion to ye discours about ye mony con- tributed by strangers." It was finally put to vote " whether M' Prescott shall have one halfe of ye mony contributed by Straingers and ye Inhabitants ye other half," and " Voted in ye Afermitive."

The expenses of the parish at the beginning were paid partly by rates or taxes, and partly by voluntary contributions. In May, 1712, a meeting was called at the meeting house " to see about the contribution and allso to Consider of Bulding A Dwelling hous for ye minister or els to allow sumthing to Mr. Pres- cott and he Buld A hous for himself." It was voted " that ye Contribution be uphekl ; that ye inhabitants will put their mony in papers; that ve inhabitants will subscrib to ye bulding of A hous for ye minister." It was afterward voted " that ye Inhabitants will Give M' Prescott ye Rocks except ye Horsblocks, ye Tim- ber allso except ye Joyce and will Give him allso about 8000 of Shingle nails that ware left." It does not appear that the house was built; Mr. Prescott afterward lived iu a house on Central Street built for him by the brother of his third wife,-Sir William Pepperell, about 1750.

In 1731, it was again voted that the money in the free contributions should be "papered," that is, it seems, that each contributor should keep his gift separate, so that it could be known who gave and how much each contributed. This custom is a eu- rious one, in view of its revival in the "envelope system " of offerings so common in churches at the present day. In 1736, £50 was raised by rates, and £100 by subscription, for the minister. From the very first, the collection of parish rates was difficult. In 1717 it was voted that the committee "take the directions of the law to gather the minister's rates this year." In 1720, the warrant commands John Tarball, Collector, to collect the amounts due the parish, and on failure to pay he is to "distrain the goods or chattles of the person or persons soe refus- ing, for ye payment of ye same, and for want of goods or chattles, whereon to make distress, you are to seize the body or bodyes of the person or persons so refusing, and are them to commit to ye common gaoll in Salem, untill he or they pay or satisfie the sum or sums that they are Rated or asses-ed." Such was the severe language of the precept to the constable; but public opinion did not support the imprisonment of individuals for non-payment of parish rates, There was great delay on the part of the collectors ; a list of rates given to Mr. Bell for collection in 1728 was

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not completed until 1743. During the whole period of Mr. Prescott's settlement, there was constant difficulty about his salary. The sum agreed upon was slow in coming in; from time to time. as the depreciated eurrency of the time fell in value, addi- tions were made to the amount granted to him, but not proportionate to the depreciation nor to his needs; and the result was a bitter controversy ex- tending over many years, and a lawsuit, in which the courts upheld Mr. Prescott's claims.

These facts, gleaned from the parish records, throw a strong light on the state of the community at the time ; the simple public interests of the people, cen- tering about their parish affairs, and the great scarcity of money among a farming population who supported themselves upon the soil, but had no means of exchanging their crops and productions for ready money. The clothing was mostly home-made, spun and woven from their own wool, by the women of the household, dyed with such coloring as could be obtained at home or in the shops of Salem, and made up by wife or daughter in the plain fashion of the day. Linen, woven by the same hands, was laid up against the marriage of the daughters. All the in- dustries nece-sary for their simple life were practiced by exchange of labor or commodities among them- selves with little nse of money. Food was of the plainest ; there was little fresh meat ; no tea or coffee in mo-t families ; great scarcity of white bread ; and, in general, an absence of those luxuries which seem to the descendants of these plain farmers the very ne- cessities of living. Potatoes began to be used about 1730, though they were known to the colonists long before ; but they did not come into general use till the middle of the eighteenth century. Furniture, except in the few houses of the wealthy, was plain and bare, often home-made. Earthen-ware and wooden vessels, with pewter plates and cups, were the table-ware of the farmers. Spoons of pewter and horn were in use, and the few silver utensils were cherished as precious heirlooms. The bare floors knew no carpets, though they were scoured white, and sometimes decorated with sand sprinkled in fan- ciful designs ; the great fire-places, even when the owners made no stint of firewood, only half-warmed the inmates in the coldest weather; and the idea of warming a bed-room, except so far as a warming-pan would thaw the sheets, would have been surprising to our ancestors. There were no fires in the churches ; old or sick people took little foot-stoves in their hands, but most sat out the two and three-hour ser- mons without a ray of artificial heat, by sheer endur- ance. Woolen underclothing was not worn at all at that period, nor indeed generally until within forty or fifty years of the present time in New England. But in spite of the hard circumstances of their lives, they were a hardy, courageous and vigorous race, and many among them possessed unusual physical strength and stature, and not a few attained great length of days.

CHAPTER LXXI.

PEABODY-(Continued).

The Revolutionary War,

DURING the years before the Revolution the town went quietly on its way. At one time, in 1772, the inhabitants of the North Parish were obliged to apply to the General Court for relief against the encroach- ments of the South Parish. In December, 1771, the South Parish voted to hold the town-meetings in the South Meeting-house, and the next town-meeting was held there; and a majority of the town officers were chosen from the South Parish, without regard to the agreement before mentioned between the par- ishes, entered into before the district was established. It would seem that the South Parish must have had a majority of votes at the time. The Legislature, considering the agreement as binding upon the par- ishes, enacted the substance of it as a law.

With this exception, there is little to note in the internal affairs of the South Parish during this time. The town was early awakened to a thoroughly patri- otic feeling. In 1765, at a town-meeting in October, they gave instructions to their representative, direct- ing bim to remonstrate against the stamp act, but to do all in his power to suppress or prevent riotous as- semblies, and not to give his assent to any act of as- sembly that should imply the willingness of his con- stituents to submit to any internal taxes imposed otherwise than by the General Court of the province, and not to assent to any extravagant grants.

On December 23, 1765, additional instructions were sent to Mr. Porter, the Representative then in the General Court, similar to those already given, and concluding with an eloquent affirmation of the rights of the colonists and a denunciation of the oppressive character of the movement to deprive them of their right of managing their own internal affairs.

It is declared that taxation and representation must go together, and an argument is made of the impossi- bility of regulating the affairs of the colonies properly in England. "It is not in their power (the Parliament) to make the Easterly Banks of America contiguous to the Westerly Banks of Great Briton, which banks have lain and still ly one Thousand Leagnes distant from Each Other, and till they can do this, they can- not (as we Humbly Concieve), Provide for the Good Government of His Majesty's Subjects in these two Distant Regions, without ye Establishment of a Dif- ferent Power, Both Legislative and Executive, in Each." They then urge Mr. Porter to demand a re- peal of the Stamp Act. They say they are willing to be subject to the "Greatest and best of Kings," and to assist him always, but they think men of " Envious and Depraved Minds" have advised him wrongly. They think their grievance is such as " cannot but be resenied by every True Englishman who has any

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Spark of Generous Fire Remaining in His Breast." This was ten years before the battle of Lexington.

Samuel Holten, the Representative for the year 1768, was requested to join a convention to be gathered in Faneuil Hall, Boston, on the 22d of September, to consist of delegates from the adjacent towns in the Commonwealth. It was held during several days, and the differences between the colonies and the mother country were fully discussed. Dr. Holten took an active part in the deliberations, and distin- guished himself for his vigor and acuteness of mind and excellent judgment, which characterized him throughout his long and useful public life.

The people of the town shared in the patriotic excitement of the times. The daily converse of the people was upon the signs of the times, and all were of one mind in the firm determination to re- sist the new laws which were in derogation of their chartered rights. It was hoped that war might be averted, but if it must come they would prepare for it as best they could.

In 1770 the merchants of Boston passed the non- importation agreement. The obnoxious tax, though repealed as to several articles, still existed upon tea, and the agreement expressed a determination to im- port no goods from Great Britain that were subject to the tariff, particularly tea. The people of the town, on May 28, 1770, voted their approbation of this action of the Boston merchants, and further voted " that we will not ourselves (to our knowledge), or by any person, for or under us, Directly or Indirectly, Purchase of such Person or Persons, any goods what- ever, and as far as we can effect it, will withdraw our connection from every Person who shall Import Goods from Great Brittain, Contrary to the Agreement of the Merchants aforesaid. Voted that we will not drink any Tea ourselves, and use our best endeavors to prevent our Families and those connected with them, from the use thereof, from this Date, until the Act imposing a Duty on that Article be repealed or a general Importation shall take place. Cases of Sickness excepted." A committee of twelve was raised to convey a copy of this resolution to every family in the town, to receive the signatures of the people. The committee was instructed to write the names of all who refused to append their signatures to these articles, and publish them as enemies to the country. The resolutions were printed in the Essex Gazette. Hanson says that Isaac Wilson seems to have been the only one who opposed the popular en- thusiasm.

In June, 1772, a committee was chosen to take into account our civil liberties. They drew up a series of resolutions which were presented to the town and adopted by it unanimously. The resolutions are full of the spirit of the times, and set forth clearly and vigorously the oppressive nature of the legislation directed against the liberties of the colonies by Par- liament, the various irregular and oppressive acts of

the Royal governor, the changes in judicial tribunals and all the grievances which so wrought upon the minds of our forefathers ; they ended by instructing the rep- resentative of the town to contend, in a constitutional way, for the just rights and privileges of the people, to labor for a union of the provinces, to refuse to yield chartered privileges, and to use his endeavors that honorable salaries be granted to the Governor, the Judges of the Superior Court and others, adequate to their dignity, with a view to lessening the influence of the crown over such officers.

Dr. Samuel Holten, Tarrant Putnam, and Captain William Shillaber were chosen a committee to cor- respond with the committees of correspondence for Boston and other towns. These committees of cor- respondenee and safety were chosen in almost every town, and are often mentioned in the legislation of the period. In some instances great and unusual powers were granted to them, particularly in the acts passed with the endeavor to prevent speculation in the necessaries of life at a time when the depression of the currency gave rise to great variations of prices. In one of these acts "To prevent Monopoly and Op- pression " it is enacted that these grants of extraor- dinary powers should not be a precedent for the fu- ture. Such were the prudence and forethought of the men of those times, even in the heat of civil war. Indeed, the most remarkable thing about the public proceedings of those days, both in towns and in the General Court, is the moderation and sober judgment by which their feelings were tempered, even when profoundly aroused. The same spirit which led the General Court to surround those accused of being enemies of the country with every safeguard for a fair and impartial trial, to make provision for the families of Tories who had fled from the State, to modify the se- verities of attainder for treason, and to guard the exe- cution of the death penalty with the wisest restric- tionis, is seen in the public aets of towns during this period. All extravagance is avoided, and calmness and deliberation stamp all the proceedings. There is much in the records of Danvers during this time of which the patriotic citizen has a right to be proud, and which belong as much to one locality as to an- other. The Rev. Mr. Holt, who had been settled in the South Parish in 1758, was an ardent patriot, and he is reported to have declared that he would rather live on potatoes than submit. He procured a musket and performed drill-service regularly in the ranks of Captain Eppes' company.

On the 27th of September, 1774, Dr. Holten, the representative to the General Court to be held in Sa- lem in October, was instructed to adhere firmly to chartered rights, not to acknowledge in any way the Act of Parliament for altering the government of Massachusetts Bay, and to acknowledge the council chosen by the last General Court. He was also au- thorized, if the General Court should be dissolved, to meet in a General Provincial Congress and there " to

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act upon such matters as may come before you, in such a manner as shall appear to be most conducive to the true Interest of this Town and Province, and most likely to preserve the liberties of all America."

On November 21, 1774, the town voted to adhere strictly to all the resolves and recommendations of the Provincial Congress, thereby repudiating the government of England.

On January 9, 1775, it was voted to comply with the provincial recommendation, and arm and equip each man, and to provide for frequent discipline; and it was provided that each man should be paid one shilling for each half-day he was in service. On Jan- uary 19, a committee was appointed to see that the citizens of Danvers were obedient to the provincial recommendations. It was voted "that the meeting of the inhabitants of this town in parties at Honses of Entertainment, for the purpose of Dancing, Feast- ing, &c., is expressly against the Eighth Article of the American Congress Association. Therefore the Committee of Inspection are particularly instructed to take care that the said eighth article in the Asso- ciation is strictly complied."

When Col. Leslie marched toward Danvers for the purpose of destroying certain stores, a company from Danvers, under Capt. Samuel Eppes, marched to Sa- lem to repel the expected attack. It was on Sunday, February 26, 1775, when the alarm was sounded ; it is said that the sermon was cut short, and the remaining services deferred to a more convenient season. Rev. Mr. Holt is said to have been among those who marched in line on this occasion. The sober judg- ment of Col. Leslie, aided by the counsels of the more prudent among the inhabitants, avoided an encounter at the time, but the men were given a fore- taste of the excitement of gathering in arms at the alarm of invasion.

The 19th of April arrived, and the news of the ad- vance of the British soldiers to Concord and Lexing- ton was brought to Danvers at about nine o'clock in the forenoon. The ringing of bells and the beat of drums communicated the tidings to the citizens. The appointed meeting place was near the South Church, at the bend of the old Boston road by the Bell tav- ern, and thither the men thronged from every direc- tion.

The rendezvous of the minute-men was on the very spot where the Lexington monument was after- ward erected, at the junction of the Boston road and the main street. Gen. Foster, then twenty-six years of age, had been appointed captain of the minute- men from the southern part of the town about ten days before; these minute-men were to be in readi- ness at a moment's warning. They were ready, and all to a man assembled at the appointed place. The Rev. Mr. Holt gave his parting benediction to them, and they started for the field of death. The women gathered about and assisted to prepare their husbands or brothers or lovers for the fight.

There had been three companies of militia in Dan- vers, but on March 3d it had been voted, agreeably to a vote of the Provincial Congress, that a quarter of the soldiers in the town should be minute-men. These minute-men were given in part to Israel Hutchinson, and in part to Gideon Foster. Foster's company was made up chiefly from Capt. Samuel Eppes' company of militia, and partly by volunteers.

By some mistake in the records these men were never formally separated from Capt. Eppes' company, so that the muster rolls of the State show only Capt. Hutchinson's company of minute-men and three companies of militia. But Captain, afterwards Gen- eral, Foster, who lived to the advanced age of ninety- six, gave a full account of the affair to many people now living, and it is certain that he acted as captain at the battle of Lexington. It would seem that Capt. Samuel Eppes' company was made up from the sonth parish, while Capt. Jeremiah Page commanded a company from the north parish, and Capt. Samuel Flint's company included those in the northwestern part of the town, probably in both parishes. Capt. Hutchinson's company of minute-men was made up mostly of men from the New Mills, while Capt. Fos- ter's company included his own neighbors from the south parish. The list of Capt. Foster's minute-men, given from memory by him in 1837, is as follows :

Samuel Cook, Jr.

William Rice.

George Southwick, Jr.

Joseph Bell.

Henry Jacobs, Jr.

John Setchell.

John Collins.

Jonathan Newhall.

Benjamin Eppes.

Stephen Twiss.

Samuel Webber.

Stephen Small.

James Stone.

Uriah Harwood.

Solomon Wyman.

Jacob Reed,

Robert Stone. Abel Mackintire.

Isaac Twiss.

James Goldthwait.

Samuel Reeves.

John Eppes, Jr.

Thomas Gardner, Jr.

Jolın Needham,

Joseph Twiss.

Jonathan Howard.

Besides these, there were certainly others, as Gen. Foster's memory was probably unable to recall from memory his entire company. Dennison Wallis and Ebenezer Goldthwaitt are mentioned by Hanson as belonging in this company, and James Osborne, whose name appears in Capt. Eppes' company, is known to have fought under Capt. Foster on that day ; Benj. Daland appears also to have been with the minute-men.

The names of those from the North Parish are given in the history of Danvers, in another part of this work, including the companies of Captains Page and Flint, and Capt. IIntchinson's company of min- ute-men.

The names of those in Capt. Eppes' company, ex- clusive of the minute-men, who went with Capt Foster, are as follows :

Eben Goldthwaite.

John Jacobs.

Jona. Tarball.

Sylvester Osborn.

Benj. Douty.

Amos King.

Aaron Osborn. Jonathan Nurse.

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Andrew Curtis.

Jonathan Felton.

Win. Tarball. Abraham Reddington. Israel Osborn.

Jonathan Procter.

Tim. Felton.

Asa Felton.

Eben Felton.

Nathan Upton. Richard Phillips. Joseph Whiteman. Joliu Wilson, Jr.

Thos, Andrews.

Joseph Osborn, 4th.

Daniel Reed.

Samuel Small.

Jona. Southwick.

Joseph Eppes.

Thomas Day.

James Eppes.

Joseph Ingles.

Wm. Southwick.

David Newhall.

John Southwick.

Nath'l Fitts.

Jon Curtis.

Wml. Frost.

Job Wilson.

Newhall Wilson.

Robert Wilson, 3d.

Jonathan Wilson, 3d.

Isaac Wilson, 3d.

Bartholomew Molton.

Joshua Moulton.

Habbakuk Lynse.

Nath. Goldthwaite.

Eben Molton.

Daniel Moulton.

Jona. Rıdney.

John Reed.

Abijah Reed.

Dauiel Marsh, Jr.

Thos, Bond.

W'm. Gollthwaite.

John Getchell.

Marble Osborn.

Samuel Stone.

Joseph Osborn, 3d.

Wm. Perkins.

There were about two hundred men in all, from Danvers, who started for the battle of Lexington.

When the news of the intention of the British reached Danvers, Foster sent one of his lieutenants to Col. Timothy Pickering, of Salem, and obtained permission to start with his minute-men without waiting for the movement of the regiment. Capt. Hutchinson's company is supposed to have started at the same time; and tradition says that the other three companies followed Foster's example, and went without waiting for Pickering's regiment. The two companies of minute-men, however, bore the brunt of the engagement, and all of those killed, wounded and taken prisoners were from Hutchinson's and Foster's companies.

The minute-men started over the fences and across the fields, and arrived at West Cambridge, a distance of sixteen miles, in four hours. There they met the retreating British. Hon. Daniel P. King has given a description of the scene, doubtless gath- ered from the lips of those who took part in it.

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History of Essex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. II, Part 12

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed Publication date: 1888 Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co. Number of Pages: 1672

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed
Publication date: 1888
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1672