USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Hardwick > History of Hardwick, Massachusetts, with a genealogical register > Part 18
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There is no evidence that many negroes, bond or free, ever re- sided here. A census of the inhabitants twenty-one years of age and upwards, was taken, January 31, 1777, by the Selectmen and Committee of Correspondence, who certified that "we have no Quakers, no Indians, and no Negroes." Probably, however, there were some negro inhabitants under twenty-one years old ; for in May, 1781, a descriptive Roll of men, enlisted in the army for three years, contains the names of Cato Boston, aged 22, Jupiter Lee, aged 16, and Zebulon Bassett, aged 23, all described as " black." The last named patriotic soldier was probably the same Zebulon, son of Captain Joseph Warner's servants, who was baptized April 10, 1757. At a later day, a few negro fami- lies have resided here, but never many at any one period ; and never at any time have they disturbed the peace of the community.
TOWN HOUSE. For nearly a century after its incorporation, the town held its public meetings in the Congregational meeting- house, which was the common property of the town, - the town
1 Boston Gazette, October 24, 1774.
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and parish being substantially the same. At length a portion of the old parish withdrew, organized a new society, and erected a meeting-house at the south end of the common. A Universalist Society had also been formed, which held its meetings in a hall, and no longer contributed towards the expenses of the old parish. Under such circumstances, it was unreasonable that the whole town should make free use of a meeting-house which belonged to a single parish, and was to be kept in repair or rebuilt without expense to the town in its corporate capacity. Better accommo- dations for the transaction of public business were also needed and generally desired. Accordingly, at a town meeting, April 4, 1836, " the Committee to whom was referred the subject of building a Town House made a report, accompanied by a plan, recommending to the town to build such a house, estimating the expense at $1,500." The report was accepted, and a committee was appointed to carry the recommendation into effect, and to " select a suitable spot for the erection of said house in the old burying-ground." The northwest corner of the burial-place was selected, August 22, 1836, on which a convenient edifice was constructed, two stories high, having on the lower floor rooms for the use of the various boards of town officers, and on the second floor a spacious hall for town-meetings and for other large assem- blies. The cost of the building was defrayed without resort to taxation. Fortunately the revenue of the United States had ex- ceeded the necessary disbursements, and a surplus had accumu- lated in the Treasury. This surplus was divided by Congress among the several States ; and the General Court of Massachu- setts distributed its share to the several towns, on certain condi- tions, one of which was that each town should refund its propor- tion, if it should afterwards be demanded. On the 3d of April, 1837, it was " voted, that the town consent to receive their pro- portion of the Surplus Revenue, under the conditions and limita- tions imposed by law. . .. Voted, that two thousand dollars of said Surplus be appropriated to the discharge of the debt to be incurred by building the Town House, and to discharge the other debts of the town."
Having completed the edifice and paid for it, the town mani- fested a willingness that it should be used for purposes other than strictly municipal affairs ; and while it rightly demanded com- pensation from those who used it, was very moderate in its ex- actions. Moreover, in the use of the Hall a proper distinction was made between the common benefit of the public and the
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private advantage of a class, or of individuals. Having author- ized the selectmen, November 13, 1837, "to take charge of the Town House, to keep it in order, to let it, &c.," the town gave some special directions concerning its use, May 8, 1838, when it was " voted that the Universalist Society shall be entitled to use the Town Hall as a place of worship, on the second Sabbath of each month, at one dollar per Sabbath, and oftener at the same rate, if the Hall be not otherwise engaged, and said Society can obtain preaching ; also that said Society be entitled to the use of said Hall for evening Lectures, at the rate of fifty cents for each evening : 1- voted, that the use of the Hall be granted to Mr. Goldsbury, for the purpose of keeping a High School, at the rate of five dollars per quarter; damages done to the Hall by the school to be repaired by the school : - voted, that the Hardwick Lyceum be entitled to the use of the Hall without paying any- thing to the town : - voted, that the use of the Hall be granted for the purpose of singing, without any charge therefor being made by the town." The High School was closed in 1839, and about two years later the Universalist Society, having erected a new meeting-house (under a mutual arrangement with the Con- gregational Society), ceased to occupy the Hall " as a place of worship "; but it continues to be used for all proper purposes, either gratuitously, or at a very reasonable charge. On the 24th of May, 1847, the town accepted a bell, as a gift from Jason Mixter, Esq., and ordered it to be placed on the Town House, bearing this appropriate inscription, - " Presented to the Town by Jason Mixter, Esq., A. D. 1847."
BURIAL-PLACES. In the " Massachusetts Spy," dated Friday, June 2, 1871, it was announced that, - " Last Friday, as the workmen on the Ware River Railroad were engaged in excavat- ing for the road-bed in Hardwick, near Old Furnace Village, they came upon an old graveyard, where they have exhumed some ten or twelve skeletons. The Town Records have been searched, and nothing can be found that gives any information in regard to the matter. An old lady, eighty-five years of age, says that her grandfather used to tell of a public burying-ground somewhere in that locality. At present the whole affair is a mystery, and there seems to be no means of obtaining any clue in regard to the matter." Additional particulars were mentioned
1 On the passage of this vote, which was sharply contested, there were 45 yeas and 34 nays.
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in the " Springfield Republican " of the same date: " Twenty- eight skeletons had been exhumed, up to Tuesday night, in the old cemetery at Furnace Village, Hardwick, brought to light by the excavations for the Ware River Railroad, and there was a prospect of finding still more. These were all found in a space of fifty feet in length and twenty feet wide, being the square cut upon the centre line of the road-bed. It is very curious that no definite information in regard to so large a yard can be obtained. The remains that have been lately taken out have the hair more plainly defined than the first, and pieces of boards, used in mak- ing the coffins, have been found, - in fact were attached to cof- fin-nails, old fashioned, wrought, about such as blacksmiths use for horse-shoes, now-a-days. The pieces of boards were so plainly defined that one could tell that the boards were split from the logs instead of being sawed."
I visited the place 1 June 8, 1871, and found the skeletons de- .. scribed, then numbering thirty ; some were of persons apparently well advanced in life, some of middle age, and others of young children. The number exceeded my expectations; but that several persons had been buried there, was a tradition, current in my boyhood, though strangely unfamiliar to the present gen- eration. Indeed, the greatest " mystery " in regard to this mat- ter is, that so few persons now living should have any knowledge or remembrance of that tradition ; I could find none, except the " old lady,2 eighty-five years old " in 1871, and her recollection was vague and indistinct. Among the very earliest pioneers, if not absolutely the first, was William Thomas, the owner and oc- cupant of the farm where the skeletons were found. Nearly three quarters of a century ago I received from my elders the tradition that he and several members of his family were buried on his own farm, and that some of his neighbors had permission to bury their dead in the same place. The precise spot was never designated to me; but it was always described as on this farm, and there can be no reasonable doubt that it was where the skeletons were exhumed in 1871. Mr. Thomas died May 22, 1747, aged probably about 60 ; his wife Patience died October 27, 1746. In 1749 the farm passed out of the possession of the Thomas family, and gradually all traces of the ancient graves were obliterated.
1 This spot is about a mile and a quar- ter southerly from the Furnace Village, and nearly three miles southeasterly from the Common ; it is a gravelly knoll, about
twenty rods southeasterly from the house marked " C. Paige " on the R. map.
2 Daughter of Deacon James Paige, and mother of Deacon James N. Brown. She died June 16, 1880.
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This was never a public burial-place, and no reference to it on the Town Records need be expected. Mr. Thomas had posses- sion of this farm and occupied a house thereon as early as Decem- ber 13, 1732, and how much earlier does not appear. Before the public burial-place was established, before any saw-mills were erected, as is indicated by some remnants of " boards, split from the logs instead of being sawed," and possibly before he had any neighbors nearer than Rutland and Brookfield, some member of his family may have deceased ; and in such case it was natural that he should use a portion of his own land as a private ceme- tery ; it was natural, also, that he and his family, as long as they retained possession of the farm, should bury their dead in the same place. It is a part of the tradition, and the large number of skeletons indicates the same fact, that some of the neighboring families were buried in this rural spot, so much more easy of access than the public burial-place on the highlands, even after it was prepared for use. There may have been a special reason for the clustering of graves in this spot, if there be substantial truth in another tradition, communicated to me in 1838, by a very in- telligent lady,1 then ninety years old, namely, that before the first meeting-house was erected on the Common, meetings for re- ligious worship were for some time held in or near the house of Mr. Thomas. If this were so, it was natural that his neighbors should desire to bury their dead here rather than on their own farms.2 Except the theory mentioned in the note, I am not aware that any other explanation has been offered concerning the bones, which having rested undisturbed for more than a cen- tury, until the memory of them had nearly perished from the
1 The widow of Major-General Jona- the logs instead of being sawed ; " nor is than Warner.
2 A theory gained temporary currency that these skeletons were " the relics of a portion of the Shays Rebellion; " that after the attack on the arsenal at Spring- field in January, 1787, " the Shays party retreated to Hardwick where they en- camped and kept quiet. That winter was severe, and many died, being buried in rough wooden boxes." But this theory is incredible for several reasons : - What- ever may have been the scarcity when the first deaths occurred in the families of Mr. Thomas and his neighbors, there was certainly no lack of saw-mills half a cen- tury later, in 1787, nor any necessity to construct coffins of boards "split from
it probable that so many women and children were camp-followers, and died in one winter, as the skeletons indicate. Moreover, there is no evidence that the Shays army ever entered Hardwick, after the retreat from Springfield. On the contrary, all the authorities agree that instead of encamping and keeping quiet, here or elsewhere, through the winter, the troops were utterly routed and scat- tered at Petersham, February 4, 1787, just ten days after their abortive attempt at Springfield. Indeed, they did not even pass through Hardwick on their retreat, but fled from Petersham in the opposite direction through Athol.
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earth, were accidentally disinterred in 1871, to the great astonish- ment and bewilderment of the living inhabitants. After due examination, they were placed together in a box and again depos- ited in the earth, under the direction of the selectmen.
The oldest public burial-place in Hardwick is in the centre of the town, on the east side of the Common. It is not a part of the " ten acres," devoted by the proprietors, February 21, 1732-3, to public use ; but it was probably substituted for the original grant, about 1741, when the second meeting-house was erected. How early this burial-place was used does not appear. The most ancient date now to be found on any head-stone, is on that of Han- nah, wife of Thomas Haskell, who died, May 16, 1749, aged 25. Deacon John White, the father of Rev. David White, was born at an earlier date (1663) than any other person known to have been buried in that ground ; he died November 13, 1750, in the eighty-eighth year of his age. Next to him in seniority of birth was Daniel Warner, the progenitor of almost all who now bear that name in Hardwick, who was born in 1666, and died March 12, 1754, in the eighty-eighth year of his age. Both of these pa- triarchs were born in Hatfield. Far exceeding them in age, and the oldest person ever buried in that ground, was Mercy, widow of Deacon William Paige, who was born at Brookfield January 3, 1720-1, and died here February 19, 1823, having completed more than one hundred and two years of life.
This burial-place has been sadly shorn of its original propor- tions. In 1768 the northerly line was 15} rods in length ; the east erly line, 14 rods ; and the southerly line, 11 rods. The westerly line appears to have been a continuation of what is now the east- erly line of the road running northerly from the Common towards Petersham.1 The first mutilation was authorized by a vote passed May 9, 1791, when a committee consisting of sixteen prominent inhabitants, previously appointed " to view the Com- mon and the lands adjoining, and see what alterations may be convenient and necessary to be made ; also to inquire of the pro-
1 These dimensions are gleaned from a deed of the meeting-house lot to the town, executed by John Rowe, May 30, 1768, and another deed of the adjoining premises to Daniel Ruggles, from the heirs of the same John Rowe, dated July 9, 1803. Worc. Reg. Deeds, lix. 113; cliv. 126. In my school-boy days there
were several depressions in the surface of the ground on the easterly side of the present Common, which were then re- puted to be indications of ancient graves ; but whether their contents had been re- moved to the present contracted limits of the burial-place, is not certainly known.
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prietors of the lands adjoinging, to know of them on what condi- tions they will dispose of their lands, provided the committee shall think it expedient to enlarge the Common ; also to exam- ine respecting the expediency and propriety of removing the Burying-yard wall, and laying a part of the present Burying-yard common," submitted a report which was accepted; and the town thereupon voted to enlarge the Common by taking in a portion of the burying-ground on the easterly side of the Common, and a strip of land on the westerly side, given by General Warner on certain conditions to which the town assented. No further mate- rial encroachment seems to have been made until August 22, 1836, when the town instructed its committee to erect a Town House " on the northwest corner of the old Burying-ground." At this time a new cemetery had been established, and an inclina- tion was exhibited by many, not only to discontinue their accus- tomed use of this place, hallowed for a century by the dust of the dead and the tears of the living, but to sell it outright, for " thirty pieces of silver," more or less, and permit it to be utterly perverted from its original destination.1 It was thought to be a desirable location for dwelling-houses, and especially for stores and public buildings. The Town House had covered several
1 While this spirit of vandalism was rife, the town celebrated its centennial anniversary. In the address on that oc- casion my fellow citizens were besought to refrain from the proposed alienation of this " God's acre " from the use to which it had been piously dedicated. I venture to republish the appeal in this note : - " Of those who commenced the settle- ment here, not one remains. Most of those who were active, during the first fifty years of our history, have also departed. They sleep in the grave, -all that was mortal of them, - chiefly in the inclosure near this house, which was devoted as a burial-place, by the proprietors of the township. I exceedingly regret that a few individuals have manifested a disposition to appropriate it to other purposes en- tirely. I know not how some persons may feel on this subject. But my fathers sleep in that ground ; and I would gladly preserve their remains from indignity. In regard to most of my fellow citizens, I may say your fathers sleep there, and it becomes you to watch over them. They who converted a howling wilderness into
fruitful fields and pleasant gardens, sleep there. They sleep there, who labored, suffered privation, and freely perilled their lives in contests with savage beasts and more savage men, that we might en- joy plenty, and liberty, and peace. Of all which they once possessed, they withheld nothing from us, but that small spot of ground, where, with their fellow-laborers and fellow-sufferers, their wives and their children, they might rest in peace till the resurrection. Let us not grudge them this scanty pittance. They gave us their houses and lands ; - do not deprive them of their graves. Let not their ashes be scattered to the four winds, nor their bones be thrown out, to be trampled under foot by the unthinking multitude. Let not that spot of ground, already shorn of its original proportions, be further des- ecrated. Let it rather be neatly and sub- stantially inclosed, and planted with trees and shrubbery. It will then be a· pleas- ant retreat for meditation, an ornament to your village, and a perpetual monu- ment of your respect for the memory of your ancestors."
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graves, without disturbing their contents ; and this was regarded by some as a sufficient excuse for digging to any required depth for the construction of basements and cellars. After the project had been freely discussed for several months, it took definite form March 5, 1838, when an article was inserted in the warrant for the annual town meeting, " to see if the town will dispose of a portion of the old burying-ground to Joel S. Marsh, lying be- tween the elm trees near the Town House, 44 feet in length, north and south, and 34 feet in width, for the purpose of erecting a store ; " to the honor of the town, I glady copy the record that " a motion that the town consent to sell the land to Mr. Marsh, as requested by him, passed in the negative." It does not ap- pear that a similar proposition was afterwards presented to the town by any individual ; but an attempt was made December 30, 1840, to purchase a part of the burial-place for a very differ- ent purpose, which could be carried into effect without disturbing the bones of the dead. At that date, the second article in the warrant was " to see if the town will sell to the First Universal- ist Society, for a reasonable compensation, a spot of land in the old burying-ground, sixty feet deep and fifty feet front, lying directly back of two elm trees between the Town House and Mixter and Delano's store, for the purpose of erecting a church thereon. . . . The subject contained in the second article of the warrant was discussed at considerable length, and many objec- tions having been made to granting the spot referred to in said article, it was voted to dissolve the meeting." 1 This was equiva- lent to an absolute refusal to grant the request. Such decisive action by the town, after full discussion, settled the question for one generation at least, and it may be hoped for all generations, that neither individuals nor societies should be permitted to dis- turb the ashes of " the rude forefathers of the hamlet." Up to this time, no further attempt has been made to diminish the size of this old grave-yard. It has long ceased to be used for the burial of the recent dead, partly because it would be difficult to find a spot not already occupied, and partly because a more com- modious and more attractive cemetery has been provided ; but it has not been unduly neglected, nor is its appearance, as a disused burial-place, discreditable to the town.
1 A similar application had been re- jected, May 5, 1828, when it was “voted not to grant the First Calvinistic Society a spot for a meeting-house lot, either on
the northwest corner of the burying- ground, or on the southerly part of the Common."
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As early as 1804 it was found that the burying ground had been made too small by its recent reduction in size, and a com- mittee was appointed to select another place. At a town meet- ing, May 6, 1805, it was " voted that the committee chosen last year for the purpose of procuring a suitable spot for a burying- yard, be empowered to purchase one as central as they can find." No purchase was made, however, until January 11, 1815, when a committee reported in favor of buying one acre and a half 1 of the Rev. Thomas Holt, and were authorized to close the bargain on the proposed terms. This lot has been several times enlarged by the purchase of another acre on the north side, November 12, 1849, afterwards of an adjoining tract, on the east side, of Mr. John Paige, and April 3, 1876, of somewhat more than two acres on the south side, of Mr. Joseph C. Paige. No lack of care or attention in regard to this cemetery is chargeable to the town or to individuals. It is very substantially fenced and orna- mented by trees. Many monuments have been erected, and the head-stones are generally of a good character, and preserved clean and erect. Altogether, it is one of the neatest, well-ordered cemeteries in that section of the country. The first person buried here was Mr. Lendall Whipple, who had a few days pre- viously assisted in erecting the stone inclosure, and who died November 21, 1817, aged nearly twenty-two years. The oldest person was probably Mrs. Sibillah Dexter (successively the wife of Mr. Samuel Thurston, and of Captain Samuel Dexter, both of Hardwick), who died at New Braintree, July 13, 1849, at the age of one hundred years, as inscribed on her head-stone, and on the Town Record of New Braintree. The head-stone of Mr. Asahel Billings, who died July 16, 1838, represents him to have attained the age of one hundred years; and the Town Record calls him 99; both overrate his age, which probably did not ex- ceed 97, and was equalled or exceeded by that of three others, at least : Mrs. Mary, widow of Daniel Billings, who died June 8, 1835, aged 97; Mrs. Hannah, widow of David Aiken, who died July 28, 1837, aged 97 ; and Mrs. Olive, widow of Ephraim Ruggles, who died August 3, 1858, aged 98.
About the commencement of the present century, a =burial- place was established in the southwesterly part of the town, near the place where the Baptist meeting-house stood. It contains
1 Situated about a quarter of a mile of the roads leading to Petersham and to north of the Common, at the intersection Barre.
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many graves, a reasonable proportion of which are designated by suitable memorials. The earliest date which I observed is on the head-stone of Abel Burt, son of Rev. Ebenezer Burt, who died June 23, 1803, aged 9 months. The greatest age denoted on any head-stone is that of Mr. Samuel L. Robinson, who died January 18, 1863, aged 95 ; and nearly approaching this is the age of Mr. Henry Higgins, who died March 15, 1837, aged 94. It is highly probable that Mr. Jesse Snow, who died in June, 1825, aged 96, was buried here, but no head-stone is found where it might be ex- pected to stand, near that of his wife, Mrs. Mary Snow, who died February 5, 1813, aged 77.1 Much credit is due to those who have charge of this cemetery for keeping it in so good condi- tion in all respects.
In the northerly part of the town, near Barre, is a very neat inclosure, apparently a private burial-place belonging to the Taylor family. The earliest date is on the head-stone of Seth Taylor, who died July 7, 1811, aged 66, and the greatest age is inscribed on that of Sylvanus Taylor, who died April 5, 1849, aged 75.
In the old cemetery, near the Common, in addition to the poetical inscriptions, common to others at the same date, a few are found which appear to be original : -
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