USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Saugus > History of Lynn, Essex county, Massachusetts: including Lynnfield, Saugus, Swampscot, and Nahant > Part 53
USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Nahant > History of Lynn, Essex county, Massachusetts: including Lynnfield, Saugus, Swampscot, and Nahant > Part 53
USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Lynnfield > History of Lynn, Essex county, Massachusetts: including Lynnfield, Saugus, Swampscot, and Nahant > Part 53
USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Swampscott > History of Lynn, Essex county, Massachusetts: including Lynnfield, Saugus, Swampscot, and Nahant > Part 53
USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Lynn > History of Lynn, Essex county, Massachusetts: including Lynnfield, Saugus, Swampscot, and Nahant > Part 53
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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64
Mr. Newhall kept the tavern during the Revolution; and it was conducted on that liberal scale which rendered it a real
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public benefit. He was an excellent provider, social in his habits, neat in his arrangements, and unwearied in his efforts to make his house an attractive traveler's home. The poor of his neighborhood and the indigent wayfarer he freely relieved ; and to the sick and wounded soldier, his door was always open. In connection with the tavern, he carried on a farm; and his business, on the whole, was quite extensive. It was not uncom- mon for an entire company of hungry soldiers, and not unknown for even a regiment to suddenly make their appearance and halt for a meal. To provide for such emergencies he kept on hand fatted oxen from which a sufficient number might be promptly slaughtered, the beef being at once disposed of in great boilers prepared expressly for the cooking, his large garden, which is represented to have comprised some six acres, furnishing the vegetable accompaniments. The whole establishment was kept under his immediate supervision; and for some years he is said hardly ever to have retired to a bed to rest, but to have slept in an arm chair.
Under the administration of Mr. Martin, and down to the commencement of the Revolution, a pictured lion and unicorn decorated the sign-board that swung from the ponderous oaken arm in front of the house. But Mr. Newhall, being an ardent patriot, substituted the more genial and hopeful emblem of a rising sun. And there, beneath that hospitable roof, counte- nanced by the benevolent spirit that presided, were enacted many and many a pleasant scene. The sleghing party on the winter night found blazing fires and smoking viands, and a clean upper room for the sly dance; and on all occasions of great parade the most ample provision was found. And the good cheer and cordial hospitality induced many a guest to linger on his way. It has been said, however, that there was one occasion on which the landlord's usual courtesy was not exemplified, an occasion when he manifested unwonted impatience for the de- parture of a considerable body of callers, mostly young men, armed with fowling pieces, and bound up the westward road. He freely supplied their wants, but refrained from any motion that might cause a moment's delay. It was on the morning of the battle of Bunker Hill.
Mr. Newhall married Elizabeth Hodgkins, of Ipswich, on the
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. - WILLIAM GRAY.
21st of August, 1766, and had four sons and four daughters, viz: William, born 21 June, 1767, and dying in infancy ; Eliza- beth, b. 21 May, 1768; William again, b. 10 December, 1769 ; Sarah, b. 7 August, 1777; Lydia, b. 24 December, 1778 ; Jacob, b. 1 November, 1780; Lucy, b. 26 July, 1782; Joseph, b. 28 November, 1783.
Landlord Newhall kept the tavern till 1807; and notwith- standing the business was remarkably successful, his benevo- lence prevented any great accumulation of property, and he continued to labor industriously, as a farmer, till old age. He died on the 18th of June, 1816, at the age of seventy-six. The late Benjamin F. Newhall, for many years one of the most active and prominent citizens of Saugus, and well known for his nume- rous contributions to the public journals was a grandson of his.
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WILLIAM GRAY. - 1750-1825.
Perhaps, taking all things into view, the most widely known, highly accomplished, and successful merchant that New England ever produced, was William Gray, almost univerally known un- der the familiar though rather inelegant contraction of " Billy " Gray. He was born at Lynn, on that part of Water Hill now called Marion street, on the 27th of June, 1750. The house in which he was born is still standing, and known by our older people as the Dr. Flagg house, being the one at the eastern end of the street, directly opposite where it bends into Boston street.
The family of Mr. Gray settled here at an early period, though his ancestors were not among the first comers. At the time William was born, his grandfather, whose name was likewise William, was one of the only three individuals in Lynn who carried on the shoe business so extensively as to employ jour- neymen. (See under date 1750.) His father, whose name was Abraham, was a shoemaker, and frequently visited Salem, where he had numerous customers to whom he took the products of his handicraft, in saddle-bags. The family of Mr. Derby, into whose counting-room William subsequently entered, were among the customers.
Abraham Gray afterward removed to Salem, where he was for P2* 32
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many years deacon of the First Church. He took William, who was then quite young, with him; and that was the termination of his residence in Lynn, though he ever retained an interest in his native place, and maintained business connections with her people. For forty years he supplied the manufacturers and dealers here with large quantities of Russia sheeting, which was at the time much used in the manufacture of shoes.
His constitution was naturally feeble, and he inherited the melancholy trait of consumption. Salem, at that time, had the reputation of being a very unfavorable locality for those having a tendency to the insidious disease just named; but the tem- perate life and active habits of young Gray protected him from the destroyer. Although perhaps every feature of his face, taken separately, would be pronounced homely, yet his whole countenance glowed with such an invariable and attractive smile, and his bright gray eyes expressed such integrity of soul and goodness of heart, that he was usually considered handsome. No one who has contemplated the perfect portrait of him by Stuart, can fail to recognize the likeness of one of dignity and fine presence ; it is indeed a picture that might well immortalize both artist and subject. In stature, he was rather below than above the medium size, but symmetrical.
The precocity of young Gray, soon after his removal to Salem attracted the notice of Samuel Gardner, then a prominent mer- chant of the place, who offered to receive him as an apprentice. His father asked what compensation would be allowed, and to his surprise was answered that six guineas could be taken with the best apprentice in the country, but that William would be taken without a bonus. He very soon found himself in the best graces of Mr. Gardner; a trivial incident, happening soon after the apprenticeship began, doing much to effect this. He had broken the store window by his ball, and very ingenuously con- fessed the fact, proving, at the same time, that his apparent ne- glect to repair was attributable to the broken promise of a glazier. His truthfulness was warmly applauded, and a new suit of clothes given as a reward. And the good merchant continued to clothe him as long as he remained. A rigid adherence to Truth was one of the most prominent characteristics of Mr. Gray. He worshiped her. After leaving Mr. Gardner he entered the em-
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. - WILLIAM GRAY.
ploy of Richard Derby, another eminent merchant of Salem; and there he perfected himself in all that was necessary for the commencement of his own illustrious mercantile career. So far as school education was concerned, however, he never received any thing beyond what the district school afforded.
Mr. Gray married Elizabeth, daughter of John Chipman, of Marblehead, though not, as I was many years ago informed by an old lady who was intimate in the family, without some oppo- sition from her friends, his prospects, at the time, not appearing sufficient to satisfy their expectations.
The enterprise and good fortune of Mr. Gray did much to promote the general prosperity of Salem, though Lynn was not barren of benefits. The following epigram, which I believe was the production of John Prince, the lawyer, very pleasantly touches the matter of a good-natured rivalry.
Salem and Lynn for Gray's birth now contest;
Lynn gains the palm, but Salem fares the best. .
Though sometimes interesting, it is in a degree profitless, while considering the life of an individual, high or low, to spec- ulate as to what he might have been, under other circumstances ; yet it seem worthy of remark that had Mr. Gray's constitution been a healthy one, it is not unlikely that he would have spent his days as a shoemaker, at Lynn, for I am assured by one who knew him well, that his father attempted to learn him the trade, but gave it over on perceiving that it wore upon his health.
In or about the year 1808, Mr. Gray removed to Boston, and there greatly enlarged his business ; and in a few years he was reckoned the wealthiest man in the Commonwealth, if not in all New England. He possessed the manners of a gentleman, and was highly respected for his many virtues. Toward all those in his employ, who. served him faithfully, he was accus- tomed to act with the utmost generosity. The masters of some of his vessels were retained from twenty to thirty years. And during the continuance of the embargo, many had reason to be grateful for his efficient aid in procuring employment when their legitimate calling could not be pursued. And a few of his cotemporaries yet remaining in Lynn, cherish a grateful remem- brance of his friendly acts. He was liberal to the poor, and made large donations for charitable purposes.
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But it must not be supposed that the life of Mr. Gray was one of uniform success. He met with reverses; but bore them with a fortitude commensurate with his dignity as a man, and furnish- ing a most excellent example for others in similar circumstances. Under the Decrees of Bonaparte he lost many vessels; but it is to be presumed that his heirs received some remuneration from the French government, under the energetic administration of General Jackson. 1
Mr. Gray was elected Lieutenant Governor, in 1810 and con- tinued in office two years. He also held divers other offices, wherein his promptness and sound judgment rendered his ser- vices of great value. He was a Federalist in political sentiment, and at times showed some activity as a politician.
He died at Boston, on the third of November, 1825. His sons were, William R., Henry, John C., Francis C., and Horace. And the family continues to maintain the highest respectability. His only daughter, Lucia, married Col. Samuel Swett, who is still living, though she died some years since. Rev. William Gray Swett, the much beloved pastor of the Unitarian Society in Lynn, from January 1, 1840 to the time of his decease, Feb- ruary 15, 1843, was born of this marriage.
MICAJAH COLLINS. - 1764-1827.
Mr. Collins was born on the 19th of April, 1764, and was a son of Enoch Collins. He received a fair education, and for more than a quarter of a century was teacher of the Friends' school here, ever retaining the respect of the parents and affec- tion of the pupils. His ministerial labors were approved by the Society for nearly forty years, and he was well known and highly respected in the many parts of the United States, into which he journeyed. He married Hannah Chase, of Salem, but had no children. The last moments of his life are represented to have displayed, in a marked degree, the true characteristics of the dying Christian. Many friends and neighbors assembled around his bed, and in kind words he dealt to them admonitions and encouragements, and expressed his own assurance of a · blessed immortality. Then he took each individual by the hand and bade all an affectionate farewell. Like the setting
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. - MICAJAH COLLINS.
of a summer sun, he gently passed away, without a murmur or a sigh. His death took place on the 30th of January, 1827.
One or two extracts from a poetic tribute to the memory of Mr. Collins, are here introduced, a tribute which originally ap- peared in the Newport (R. I.) Mercury, and was penned by Rev. Enoch Mudge, another of the devoted sons of Lynn -the insertion here answering the double purpose of celebrating the virtues of one worthy native and affording a specimen of the poetic ability of another - besides presenting the grateful spec- tacle of a warm remembrance of an early friendship. Though ro very striking conception is, perhaps, apparent in the lines, they yet exhibit, with such clearness, the growth of grace in the renewed heart, and its effect on the inward and outward life, and are withal imbued with such a reverence for virtue, that they possess a substantial value. Didactic poetry, however, in these days, finds but little favor, whatever may be its degree of excellence.
I knew him when in giddy rounds of mirth He sought for happiness in things of earth ; When the light mind with buoyant feelings soared, And for delight forbidden things explored. Quenched were the sacred sparks of holy truth, Impressed upon him in his early youth, When the young airy mind with heightened glee Was from restraint hard struggling to be free. Bewitching pleasure then allured his mind; In them content he vainly sought to find, But found it not !- till he who came to call The wanderer back from sin, and guilt, and thrall, Spake to his soul ; the quickening power he felt, Which caused his hard, obdurate heart to melt. Pungent and deep was keen conviction's dart! Then godly sorrow pained the broken heart! But the good Shepherd, by his tender care, Soothed all his fears, and saved him from despair; And gently led him by alluring grace In the sweet paths of righteousness and peace. A sacred calm ensued within his breast, And now the wanderer found a place of rest ; New objects of pursuit inspired his mind, And purifying love his soul refined. The friends of youth he now delights to meet, And sit like Mary at his Master's feet ;
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And tender sympathy, by grace inspired, And love of truth his placid bosom fired. * * * In temper open, amiable, and mild, In manners simple, trusting as a child ; He to the youth a pleasing pattern gave. Of access easy, pious, cheerful, grave ; All classes felt an interest in the man, For innocence through all his actions ran.
Long as an able minister he stood, And spent his lengthened life in doing good; At home, abroad, the humble Christian shone, While all the praise he gave to God alone.
SOLOMON MOULTON .- 1808-1827.
This young man, for he was but nineteen years of age at the time of his decease, gave promise of doing much honor to his native place. His poetical ability was by no means inconsider- able. He was born on the 7th of January, 1808, and was the son of Joseph Moulton, who lived on Boston street. His uncle, John Lillie Moulton, who resided on Market street, in a house which stood on the west side, a few rods south of Summer, and who, in partnership with John Alley, 3d, kept a store, on the same street, at the corner of Munroe, having no children of his own, adopted him, and he kept in the store a part of the time.
The constitution of young Moulton was not naturally firm, and for many months immediately preceding his death, which was by consumption, his health was such that he was unable to continuously pursue any laborious occupation. When Mr. Lum- mus, the first printer in Lynn, opened his office, Mr. Moulton formed an acquaintance with him, which continued as long as he lived. He was much in the office and assisted in various ways. And it was in Mr. Lummus's paper, The Weekly Mirror, that most of his published pieces appeared.
He was highly esteemed for his openness and generosity of disposition; and won the respect and affection of those about him by his fidelity to the higher instincts and better sympa- thies of our nature. He wrote many pieces in verse, which appeared under the signature of " LILLIE," some of which were
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. - SOLOMON MOULTON.
well worthy of being preserved in substantial form. Many of his writings were of that plaintive cast which somehow seems to foreshadow an early departure. A passage or two from a poem of about a hundred lines, entitled "THE BURIAL," are here given, as a fair specimen of his style and execution ; and it will probably be agreed that some of the lines would add grace to many a pretentious and popular poem. In one situ- ated as Mr. Moulton was- dependent in circumstances, with few advantages of education, and in imperfect health - an early development of the choicest powers could hardly be looked for. And we are inclined to utter a lament in the words of one of his own lines :
" Alas! too soon cut down by cruel Death."
But yet it may be unwise to speculate as to what might have been. He died on the 26th of May, 1827.
It was a mild and lovely day in autumn ; Earth bore the marks of withering frost ; The winds had sung their desolating dirge O'er lovely Flora's wintry grave,
And formed her death-robe of the yellow leaves. But still a melancholy loveliness,
A pleasing sweetness, hung around the scene. The sun was fast descending from his proud Meridian throne in heaven's blue concave high. I had been called a solemn office to perform - 'T is the last rite that man can do for man, When life is o'er, with kind and gentle hand To lay his brother's body in the grave - And here it was a fair and lovely child, Whose angel form was now by youthful hands Unto the silent grave soon to be borne ; Alas! too soon cut down by cruel Death.
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The heart of woman injury can brook ; Ay, heap disgrace upon her precious name ; Brand her a wretched outcast from the world; Let the envenom'd darts of slander pierce And rend her lovely breast - take from her all, Yes, all that renders life most dear to man ; But leave her tender offspring to her care; Give this, her last and most endearing boon, And still she 'Il bless you for that dearest gift.
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Soon and the funeral train were at the grave ; Gently we laid the bier upon the earth, And then with trembling hands the coffin lowered Into its dark and silent home. But when The cold, dank clods of earth with deadening sound Resounded from the grave, deep were the sighs That rent a mother's agonizing breast ; For now the scene with all its withering force Had burst afresh upon her grief-worn mind. I saw her standing by the lowly grave, When the smooth, grass-grown clod o'er it was placed. The work was finished, and she gave a last And tender look toward the hallowed spot, Then joined the silent train and moved away. 'T is past - but still the scene on memory's page Is lettered deep ; and oft in pensive mood, Whene'er my feet in yonder grave-yard stray, I stop to muse upon that well known grave.
Though our young friend wrote chiefly in verse, he occa- sionally gave expression to his thoughts in what is called poetic prose. And perhaps the following is as fair a specimen of his composition in the latter form as can be found.
- MORNING.
There is a soul-exalting hour, And sweetly soothing is its power; 'T is when, wide o'er the spreading lawn, Is ushered in the early dawn.
If there is one time in the day more beautiful than another, more suited to the mind that san dwell with delight on the works of nature, and discover the impress of the Creator in every leaf and every flower - that time is morning.
To the contemplative mind the morning walk affords an ample field for the observance and investigation of the numerous works of the divine Creator which at every step, in pleasing and almost endless variety, are presented to our view. It is in the morning that the mind, freed from the vexatious cares that are attendant on the more busy concerns of the day,
Views Nature's works, throughout sublime, Unchanging still, through endless time, And renders homage to the God Who formed them by his potent rod.
There is a deep moral sublimity in the scene which the morning affords. And how congenial it is to be seated on the summit of some commanding eminence, whence to view the pale moon, just lingering in the west, as if pausing to bid "Good morning," to the more resplendent luminary on whom she is dependent for her light; to view the last faint gleam of a few lingering
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. - MARIA AUGUSTA FULLER.
· stars, as they gradually grow dim, and disappear; to hear, in the holy calm- ness of the hour when the busy hum of men is only remembered as a thing of yesterday, the rich melody of Nature's songsters, as on never tiring wing they soar aloft in heaven's blue concave. In such an hour as this, the mind is insensibly led to deep devotional contemplation. While we view the works of the Creator, we are naturally led to meditate on the Creator himself. And from the volume. of Nature, wide spread before us, we may draw lessons of instruction far superior to the narrow tenets of the studied theologian.
MARIA AUGUSTA FULLER. - 1806-1831.
Mr. Lewis has said of Miss Fuller, that she " was, perhaps, the most talented and imaginative female which Lynn has pro- duced." She was undoubtedly a young lady of rare endowment. Accustoming herself, at an early age, to the use of the pen, she was enabled to produce, while still young, many charming pieces, in prose and poetry, which found their way into the newspapers. She displayed a fine fancy, mingled with dignity of thought, and a lively appreciation of natural beauty.
She was born at Lynn on the 9th of December, 1806, and was a daughter of Hon. Joseph Fuller, who was born on Water Hill, March 29, 1772, and died at the age of 42. He was the first Senator from Lynn, having been elected in 1812, and was like- wise a Representative, for six terms. His business was exten- sive. When Mechanics Bank went into operation, in 1814, he was chosen its president; but he died the next year. He built the southmost dwelling at the point formed by the junction of Union and Broad streets, and there resided.
Her grandfather Fuller was also named Joseph. He was born in 1748, and died at the age of 82 .* He was a farmer, and owned the farm at the western extremity of Water Hill, where he resided. He was somewhat eccentric, but a man of integrity and influence ; was a delegate to the Constitutional Convention, in 1820; and could write with considerable ability, though in- clined to be more pungent than courteous. He loved contro- versy, and was at one time engaged in a newspaper warfare with Rev. Mr. Thacher.
Miss Fuller died on the 19th of January, 1831, at the early age of twenty-four. She was never married, but at the time of her decease was affianced to a gentleman who is now a min- Q2
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ister in the Calvinistic Baptist connection, though at that time he was an active member of the Unitarian Society here. Her manners were gentle and fascinating in the extreme; her edu- cation was good; and she was fitted to elicit admiration in the most refined society. Her harp was usually attuned to plaintive themes, and it seemed as if she ever entertained a latent premo- nition of an early death. Yet there were occasions on which a playful and even frolicksome nature would assert itself. Her chosen signature was " FINELLA." And one or two specimens of her writing follow. The prose article was published when she was twenty-one years of age, and certainly exhibits a rich- ness and breadth of fancy, a versatility and discipline of thought, which can only characterize one possessing far more than ordi- nary gifts. The lines entitled "The Frosted Trees," are the concluding portion of a piece, dated January 1, 1830, and as will be perceived, very pleasantly allude to Mr. Lewis's well-known poem under the same title - which may be found in this volume, under date 1829 - which had just then appeared in the Token. We have in them clear evidence that she possessed a lively wit; but it was refined, and never turned to the degenerate purposes of satire. The piece entitled "To the Loved Departed," ap- peared about ten days before her death. And the lines "To a Sea Bird," were found among the papers, she left. They are all worthy of an attentive perusal; indeed they are too full of thought and unobtrusive beauties to be appreciated by the mere surface reader. Such a mind as hers cannot fail to have a refining and elevating influence in any society ; and when one like her departs tears may fall as for a public bereavement, though there may be none to spare when the mere daughter of fashion departs.
THOUGHTS.
There are moments when the mind is free from all uneasiness, the spirits from all excitement; when the stream of thought ceases to flow on, and remains calm and unruffled, waiting for a new impulse to turn its waters into other channels - or sometimes stagnates into indolence. The early part of a winter evening is the very time for such an undefinable state of mind. I was myself sinking into it one evening, after having attended to sundry little par- ticulars, such as arranging two or three chairs, which chanced to be a little awry, placing the andirons in exactly parallel lines, and blowing from the
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hearth a quantity of white ashes which the movements had precipitated to it. Now, the fantastic motions of the blaze amused me, shooting up into steeples, like the picture of an old abbey, or wreathing in red folds around a fresh piece of fuel. The coals, too, lying in red glowing masses, seemed to smile upon me, as I sat watching their changes, and forming H's and P's of the interstices in the back-log. I was awakened from my pleasing employment, by the sud- den falling of a brand, whose curling wreaths of smoke ascended, in most unwelcome incense, to my face. Hastily adjusting it, I fled to the window, and there contemplated a scene by no means new or extraordinary, but whose quiet loveliness opened a new and corresponding train of ideas and fancies. The moon shone upon the snowy hill-top, and threw a broad sheet of light upon the water, crowning each little billow with a sparkling coronet. She is, I believe, a sonnet-inspiring planet, and somehow associated in the mind with the "lunatic, the lover, and the poet." Though belonging to neither of these classes, I must still acknowledge her influence in inspiring thoughts and "thick coming fancies."
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