History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. II, Part 201

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed. cn
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1226

USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. II > Part 201

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Family traditions furnish unmistakable evidence leading to this conclusion.

The keen students of nature early detected the remedial properties of the bubbling springs. The Pawtucket Indians had settlements in this vicinity and their medicine-men resorted to these waters. Scattering remnants of the tribe made occasional vis- its long after the Wamesick Purchase of 1685, by which " all manner of Indian rights and claims to that parcel of land granted by the General Court to the town of Billerica " were honorably extinguished.

Mrs. Franklin Stearns, of Billerica, who was born in 1801, tells the following : "My mother, who lived near the springs, often told me that she remembered distinctly when the Indians came a long distance to fill their leathern bottles with water from the springs and told her, when stopping at her home, that it was medicine." These children of the forest also brought their sick to bathe in the waters. This evidence seems to have been lost sight of, and the instinct of the brute creation was needed to lead man to this fountain of health. About 1835 the farm was owned by Augustus Pierce. It consisted chiefly of woodland

and pasture land. The owner furnished pasturage for the villagers' cattle. It was noticed that the cattle always went to the springs for water rather than to the open pond, and that cows having access to the springs were in better condition and gave better milk than those confined in neighboring pastures, where the grass was better, but the water was taken from other sources. This led to the analysis of the water by Dr. Jackson, of Boston, whose report, confirmed by later chemists, gave rise to the present beautiful health resort.

A company was soon formed who bought the real estate, and a commodious building was erected for hotel purposes. The enterprise was never a financial success until the Billerica and Bedford Railroad was put into operation. The estate was purchased by William R. Hayden, M.D., in 1856. It then com- prised forty acres of land with the hotel, stable, bath- house and bowling alley. It now comprises 175 acres, with buildings added, at a cost of $25,000. An equal sum has been expended on the grounds, making one of the most attractive health resorts within equal dis- tance of Boston.

Here is the laboratory of the New York Pharma- ceutical Company, of which Dr. Hayden is president. They make here 350 different preparations for drug- gists and practicing physicians, of which Hayden's Viburnum Compound, The Uric Solvent and Phos- phorus Pills are the principal. More than 25,000 pounds of the Viburnum Compound were shipped from this place during the last year (1889).

The Billerica and Bedford Railroad passes over the western border of the grounds, making the resort within convenient access of Boston and Lowell. The hotel, now under the proprietorship of William Adams, is filled with guests of prominence during the summer months. A post-office was established here in 1888, of which Dr. Hayden is the postmaster.

Bedford Springs is a distinct natural feature of the town, and the pharmaceutical works are entirely sep- arate from all other enterprises, but they, together constitute the most attractive feature of the town. A sketch of the life of William R. Hayden, through whose perseverance natural possibilities have become realities, and whose fertile brain has produced a blessing world-wide in its extent, will be found else- where in this connection.

CHAPTER LXXXI.

BEDFORD-(Continued).

Fire-Engine-Enforcement of Laws-Drink Custom-Witchcraft-Bounty for Crows, etc.

THE first action of the town towards procuring a machine for extinguishing fire was in October, 1827,

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HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

when $225 (two hundred and twenty-five dollars) were appropriated for that purpose, "providing the sum could be increased to an amount sufficient to purchase an engine with equipments for service." This was done by organizing a stock company of nineteen members, each owning a share, the par value being $15 (fifteen dollars). Each owner of a share held a certificate which, by vote of the town, entitled the bearer (provided he be deemed eligible) to a preference in the appointment of engine-men, who were annually appointed by the selectmen, agreeable to the statutes of Massachusetts. In 1845 hooks and ladders were added to the apparatus, but fortunately there was but little use for the machinery, and but little attention was paid to it after a few years.

In 1879, after a disastrous conflagration, the town voted to buy a suction hand-fire-engine, and the sum of $475 (four hundred and seventy-five dollars) was appropriated for it. This being done, the "Shaw- sheen Engine Company," of forty members, was formed, and paid an annual fee of $2 (two dollars) each.

The " Winthrop Hook-and-Ladder Company " was also organized, and in 1883 the annual compensation was increased for the members of both companies to six dollars. Cisterns for the storage of water were built in 1888, and the town is well protected against the ravages of fire, at an annual expense of abou: $300 (three hundred dollars).

Bedford has always been jealous of its good name, . and made haste to mete out justice to any who, by violation of law, have brought reproach upon it. In March, 1797, and for several succeeding years, officers were chosen to prevent theft, with instruc- tions to pursue offenders to justice at the public ex. pense. At this time there was a family in town so addicted to larceny that its members would steal from each other. The vigilance of the officers is ap- parent, as one of the family was brought to condigul punishment by being tied to an apple-tree (in the absence of a whipping-post) in the village, and pub- licły and legally whipped with thirty stripes. Thi: was the second offence ; a third was punishable " by the pains of death without the benefit of clergy.' This act of justice was not sufficient to deter other members of the family from similar offenees, and the town was not rid of the family until two farmers, whose estates joined that of the offenders, purchased their farm, upon condition that they should not re locate in the town.

A greater evil, the sale of intoxicating liquors, met with but little opposition until 1828. The customs of society here, as elsewhere, gave full endorsement to the free use of ardent spirits in public and private. The "flowing bowl" was prominent on both solenni and joyful occasions. The records are remarkably free from itemized bills for liquors, but the oft-re- peated charges for "entertainment," together with

traditions, leave no room for doubt as to the nature of the entertainment furnished at the public charge. In 1804 the use of lignor at funerals was abolished by vote of the town. In 1822 a committee was chosen to repair the Common, free of expense to the town for labor; but they were allowed to furnish "those that do the work with some spirit at the expense of the town." It is doubtful whether it would not have been more economical to have paid for the labor. In 1834 the overseers of the poor were instructed not to furnish ardent spirits for the poor unless directed by a physician. The first temperance society was organ - ized in 1830, and moral suasion was faithfully ap- plied, but it was not until 1888 that the State law was made effectual, through the vigilance of the "Law and Order League." To remove unfortunate possi- bilities, public-spirited men purchased the Bedford House property and organized a stock company.

The witchcraft delusion, that had been such a scourge in the Colony, had left its effect upon credu- lous minds in this town. There were those who at- tributed every mysterious occurrence to an eccentric old woman. They believed she was responsible for the power that is now seen in a balky horse-refusing to advance, or a wheel to revolve on a neglected axle. There is a tradition that in the early years of the Revolution, when the British troops were stationed in Boston, this woman, in the disguise of a Tory, had a concerted meeting with some of the proud officers of the army. She represented to them that she had a great secret, which she would reveal upon their paying a heavy fee. The officers, anxious to engage in the enterprise, met her, upon agreement, at mid- night near her own home. On being satisfied that the booty was in the chaise of the officers, she led them, by the dim light of a flickering candle, across a narrow plank which served as a temporary bridge over a swollen stream into a dark recess; she then extinguished her light, recrossed the bridge, which she pulled after her, secured the bags of English coin and went home. The ambitious officers, foiled in their uudertaking, gladly left the town, but not until they had aroused a family and obtained aid in the search for their team and guidance back to Boston.

It appears that the early farmers of Bedford were greatly annoyed and their crops seriously damaged by the crows, blackbirds and squirrels. This was a prevalent evil in the Province, so much so that the General Court enacted a law in 1740-41 authorizing towns to pay a bounty on the heads of the little creatures, and were reimbursed from the Province treasury. There was allowed "for every dozen of blackbirds taken in their nests, and not fledged, twelve pence; for the like number of blackbirds grown and fledged, three shillings; for each crow, six pence, and for every water rat, gray squirrel and ground-squirrel, four pence." The town indorsed this law at once, and the boys, stimulated by a bounty for the work of destruction, entered upou a competi-

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BEDFORD.

tive war of extermination. The treasurer's report of 1741 shows twenty-two orders " given to parsons for squirrels and birds," amounting to £12 14s. 8d.

The list includes the names of the leading men of the town. As orders were only drawn for the parents, the number of individuals enlisted in the work of destruction is not determined, but there were, doubt- less, as many as one hundred, and the records show that the practice was continued for years. One boy, William Webber, in his eagerness, mistook an owl's nest for that of a crow's, and when about to capture the fledglings was attacked by the mother owl, which plucked ont one of his eyes, subdned the youth and provided a priceless meal for her brood. In 1823 the town voted " not to allow Robbins to be killed in the town this year." In 1829 voted "to pay twenty cents for old and ten cents for young crow's heads, canght and killed within the limits of the town."

CHAPTER LXXXII.

BEDFORD-(Continued).

Profanity and Drunkenness Punished by Law -- Tithingmen and their Duties -Minor Officers -- English Right.

AT the time of the incorporation of Bedford, pro- fanity and drunkenness nad become flagrant crimes in the Province, and occasioned special legislation. In 1734 the following act, was passed by the General Conrt :

" Whoever shall be convicted of prophane swearing or cursing shall, for the first offence, forfeit and pay the sum of ten shillings ; and for every such oath or curse after the first, nttered at the same time and in the hearing of the same person or persons, the sum of two shillings, and for a second offence the fine was ten shillings." The fine for drunkenness was ten shillings for the first offence, and twice that for a rep- etition. In order that the law should be enforced, tithingmen were annnally chosen as town officers. Their general duty appears to have been to promote the Divine honor and the spiritual welfare of the peo- ple, by encouraging family worship and discipline, and checking profanity, Sabbath-breaking, idleness, intemperance and kindred immoralities. The official title, " Tithingmen, or tenth men," originated from their having a tithing, or a company of ten families, each to oversee, including their own. Two such offi- cers only were chosen at the first town-meeting, and as subsequent records furnish no evidence of an in- crease in number, it may be inferred that the people were disposed to obey the laws here better than in some places.

The most respectable voters of the town, often the deacons of the church, were elected to this office and sworn to the faithful discharge of the duties.

They were required by law to make complaint to 54-ii

the magistrate of what they saw amiss in any one under their inspection. Long poles or staffs were furnished as instruments of authority, and espe- cially used in the meeting-honse during public worship. In the expenses for 1742, Oliver Pollard has a charge of " 4 shillings for tithing men's staves." The faithinlness of the officers appears in a record of 1764, in which Stephen Davis, treasurer, gives credit for " 4 shillings for a fine for a prophane oath." It was the balance after deducting the cost of the prosecu- tion. Tithingmen were annually chosen by the town until 1848, but their duties had long before fal- ler to other officers. In March, 1822, Deacon Michael Crosby, Zebedee Simonds, James Webber and Elijalı Stearns, Esq., were chosen as tithingmen and sworn to the faithful discharge of the trust. They were in- structed to keep such order on Lord's day in the meeting-honse and the Centre School-honse as they may think proper. By virtue of a law of the Prov- ince of 1739 40, deer-reeves were annually chosen with the other officers of the town. The record of Decem- ber 17, 1739, has the following : Voted, "that viola- tion of the act relating to killing of Dear in the prov- ince be legally prosecuted. Major John Lane and Mr. Thomas Woolley be for that service sworn to the faithful discharge of the trust." Hog-reeves were chosen at the first election of officers in the town, and annually thereafter. As the town voted that the swine should go at large, according to the restrictions of the law, the duty of the hog-reef was to see that the animals were properly yoked from April to Octo- ber. The remaining months they were allowed to go free and nntrammeled.

"The English Right," an annuity from estates in the mother country, was of great assistance to some of the early families. The Lanes and Pages were the beneficiaries for several generations. It originated in New England with Job Lane (before mentioned) and came to the Page family, through the marriage of a granddaughter with Nathaniel Page, the second of the name in this country, who was born in England and came a yonth with his father, Nathaniel, to Boston in 1682, and to Bedford (then Billerica) in 1687. A fragmentary correspondence, consisting of scores of letters and bills, dating from 1651, between the custodians of the English estates and Job Lane, is among the interesting papers treasured in Bedford. The annual remittance was sometimes made in mer- chandise according to the requests of the owners, as appears from items preserved. "May 2, 1721, St. Stephen writes alone: Sende 6 large quarto bibles," one of which is now owned by Miss Sarah Chandler, of Lexington. It contains the Page family record. A letter dated " London Mar. 20, 1754, to Job & John Lane," expresses regret that " the Bibles did not suit."

"July 26, 1748, Zach. Bonrryan sends Mathew Henry's Exposition on ye Bible 5 and 6 vols." Dress fabrics were often ordered and received, and two of

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HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

the ladies of Bedford appeared on important occasions attired in the "English Gowns." The arrival of the large leather-covered trunks were occasions of much interest to the several families. It is evident that the town did not fail to exact a tax on the income, as ap- pears from the records of 1744: Voted "not to abate the Rates that the Lanes and Pages-gentlemen- were assest for their income from England." During the Revolution the income was not received and the privations of that period were felt more severely by those families than by others that had depended upon their own energies entirely; but after peace was restored with England the full amount came in onc remittance. The English law of primogeniture was not transferred to this country. New England adopted the older rule of the common law; by which all the children shared alike in their parents' estate, except in Massachusetts, where the oldest son had a double portion. The legal claimants of the Lane income at length became very numerous, and the just division very difficult ; hence the claims were sold in the early part of the present century.

Job Lane died in Malden, August 24, 1697, and his estate was inventoried at £2036 11s., the larger por- tion of which was in New England.

Other families received aid from England in the early years of the town's history, as appears from the following : "Feb. 23, 1756, Widow French's rates abated for income at England."

The following is a copy of the goods ordered by one of the heirs of the Lane estate:

"BEDFORD, September the 16, 1785.

" Mr. Lane, this is to Inform you what Articles I am Desirous to send to England for.

"Art. Frst. one Pice of Chents for one gound, Very Dark.

" Art. 2d. one Pice of Sattain for one Cloak.

" Art. 3d. One half Pice of Base.

" Art. 4th. one yard & three-quarters of Scarlet Brad Cloth.

"Art. 5th. one Silk Handkerchief.

" Art. 6th. The Rest in fine Linnen.

" In So Doing you will oblige,

" CHRYT PAGE."

CHAPTER LXXXIII.

BEDFORD-(Continued).

NOTED OCCASIONS.

THE ordination services at the settling of the minis- ters, mentioned in the Ecclesiastical section, compris- ed all of the convocations of note previous to the year 1800. On the 22d of February of that year a most imposing ceremony was participated in by the whole town in honor of General George Washington, who had died in the closing days of the last century. Rev. Samuel Stearns delivered the memorial sermon.

In the various anniversary celebrations of Concord fight, held by the mother town, Bedford has been well represented. In March, 1850, ten leading men

were chosen to confer with the people of Concord in regard to the seventy-fifth anniversary, and three of the vice-presidents were from this town at that cele- bration. At the centennial, April 19, 1875, a good company of civilians was in the procession with ban- ners. The one carried by Bedford minute-men one century earlier was borne by Isaac E. Fitch, and one with the following inscription : " Captain Jonathan Wilson killed April 19, 1775. He died for us and Liberty," was carried by Abram E. Brown. Both standard-bearers were great-grandsons of those who fought on the memorable day at Concord.

On Memorial Day, 1874, the Soldiers' Monument was dedicated with imposing ceremonies. The parent towns of Billerica and Concord assisted in the ser- vices. The former furnishing a Post of the G. A. R. and brass band and the latter sent Company C, of the Fifth Regiment, and a brass band. Josiah A. Stearns, A.M., was president of the day ; Ralph Waldo Emer- son, Sampson Mason and Rev. William J. Batt were among the speakers.

The one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the in- corporation of the town was the grand jubilee day of its existence. At the autumn town-meeting, Sep- tember 30, 1878, it was voted that the town would ob- serve this occasion. Rev. Jonathan F. Stearns, D.D., one of Bedford's sons, was chosen to prepare an his- torical address, and a large committee of citizens was chosen to conduct the celebration. The committee organized with Josiah A. Stearns, chairman ; Rev. George F. Lovejoy, secretary, and Oliver J. Lane, treasurer.

The funds for the celebration were obtained by sub- scription ; more than six hundred dollars were con- tributed to the general fund ; besides, there were many generous contributions for special objects.

When plans were so far matured as to issue notices and invitations, the committee called for a name for the celebration, and Mr. Elijah W. Stearns, the vil- lage druggist, called from his ancient Latin the nu- merical adjective " Sesqui " (one and a half). This gave the occasion a tinge of novelty and added spice to the post-prandial remarks.

August 27th, the day on which "the Great and General Court" that granted the charter for the town commenced its session, was selected for the cele- bration rather than September 23d, the date of the act of incorporation. This was to accommodate sons of Bedford engaged in literary work who were then enjoying their annual season of rest.

A mammoth tent was erected on the fields near the Common, where the exercises were held and the din- ner served.

The occasion was replete with interest for young and old. For judicious planning and careful execu- tion, the Sesqui Centennial of Bedford is recorded as an event that reflects credit upon all who contrib- uted to its success. Chief among many were the historian and president of the day, both of whom,

RESIDENCE OF WALLACE G. WEBBER, BEDFORD, MASSACHUSETTS.

851

BEDFORD.

with a brother, the last of the sons of Bedford's hou- ored minister (Rev. Samuel Stearns), have, since that day, joined the great company that they labored to honor through that celebratiou.

The organization of the church, which took place in July following the incorporation of the town, was celebrated in July, 1880, by the Church of Christ, connected with the Trinitarian Congregational Soci- ety. Rev. George F. Lovejoy, pastor of the church, preached an historical discourse, which was printed in pamphlet form. At the conclusion of the services a thank offering was made and the society freed from debt.

The fiftieth anuiversary of the gathering of the first Sabbath-school was held in July, 1868. It was an occasion of general interest. Rev. William F. Stearns, D.D., president of Amherst College, and other sons of Bedford, were prominent in the celebration.

The seventieth anniversary was another important event, when a general reunion was enjoyed. The his- tory of the school, in pamphlet form, was issued at that time.

CHAPTER LXXXIV.

BEDFORD-(Continued).

Topographical and Miscellaneous.

BEDFORD is in about the central part of Middlesex County, fourteen miles northwest of Boston and twelve miles south of Lowell. It is connected with both cities by rail.

It has Billerica on the north, the same with Bur- lington and Lexington on the east, Lexington, Lin- coln and Concord on the south, and Concord and Car- lisle on the west, from which it is separated by Con- cord River.

The village stands on a slight elevation and con- stitutes a watershed. Peppergrass Brook extends in a winding northwesterly course and Trout Brook in a southwesterly course to Concord River. Shawshine River enters the town from Lincoln at its extreme southern point and flows the entire length of the town, east of the village, entering Billerica at the north. It receives the waters of Tar Kiln Brook soon after enter- ing Bedford, and after crossing Lexington Main Street it receives Elm Brook, which drains a long range of meadows on the Concord side and takes in Hartwell Brook on its course.

Spring Brook, an outlet of Fawn Lake at Bedford Springs, unites with Potash Brook or Ash Gutter in its southeasterly course to the Shawshine, which it reaches near the East School-house. Vine Brook enters the town from the east and becomes an import- ant tributary of Shawshine River. Other small streams are tributary to either Concord or Shawshine Rivers. The only motive-powers, utilized at present are on the Shawshine River and Vine Brook.

" The soil," says Alfred C. Lane, of Boston, a grand- son of Bedford, in "Notes on Geology of Bedford," "may be divided into three kinds-the dark peat of the swamps and meadows, boulder clay and high level sand-beds."

The peat is found on the lines of the water-courses, where a considerable portion of the surface appears to have been formed of vegetable matter and was used for fuel, before the development of coal-mines ; a firm white sand subsoil which underlies this vegetable de- posit made it comparatively easy to cut out the peat or turf in convenient pieces to stack for drying. It is also used as a very good fertilizer for the sandy soil of high lands. The cranberry and an inferior quality of grass are natural productions of this soil, and turned to some profit by the farmer. The boulder clay is composed of sand, pebbles and boulders, together with clay varying in quantities according to the lo- cation. This is supposed to have drifted here with the ice and been deposited during the glacial period. The underlying ledge crops out in some locations and shows unmistakable signs of the southerly course of the ice-fields. The most noticeable is in the vicin- ity of the North School-house.

The boulder clay is the soil found in the northerly part of the town, more generally than elsewhere; it is hard to cultivate, but productive when broken and fertilized ; if left in its natural condition it produces the huckleberry and other small fruits of compara- tively little value.

The sand, besides forming the subsoil of the peat lands, is thrown up many feet above the stream level and found in beds ; by digging iu these beds one may easily detect layers of successive deposit, which indi- cate the action of the water when the ice was disap- pearing, before any well-defined water-courses had ap- peared and this territory was an inland lake. The pine trees seem to be the natural production of this soil, which is light and dry, but when enriched be- comes productive and is easily cultivated.

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History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. II, Part 201

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed. cn Publication date: 1890 Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis & Co. Number of Pages: 1226

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed. cn
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1226