History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. II, Part 208

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 208

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The Unionists or Millerites were an offshoot of the Baptists, in whose meeting-house William Miller first preached in town. They built the small house before- mentioned in 1840. They had set a time for the de- struction of the world. The time came and passed, the society went out of existence, but the world still remains.

The Orthodox Congregational Society was formed March 22, 1840, and the church May 14th, of the same year, with thirty-two members, all or nearly all of whom had withdrawn from the town church, now the First Congregational, Unitarian.

They had held services for some time previously in the hall over the yellow store which stood a short dis- tance west of Dr. R. H Phelps' house, and continued to use it until their present meeting-house was com- pleted in the fall of 1841.

Their pa tors have been Rev. James C. Bryant, Oc- tober, 1840, to March, 1845; Rev. James M. Bacon, October, 1846, to November, 1849; Rev. Daniel H. Babcock, April. 1851, to February, 1853; Rev. Elihu Loomis, October, 1854, to November, 1870; Rev. George Spaulding, November, 1870, to December, 1871; Rev. Henry E. Cooley, June, 1872, to October, 1874; Rev. George E. Hall, September, 1875, to Feb- ruary, 1877; Rev. William Sewall, March, 1877, to October, 1881; Rev. Nehemiah Boyuton, October, 1882, to September, 1884; Rev. John C. Staples, No- vember, 1884, to November, 1889.

In 1882 the church was raised, moved back and a vestry and kitchen built in the basement; a new organ was also added and the church re-dedicated in Octo- ber of that year.

The church and society celebrated their fiftieth an- niversary on May 14th of the present year, 1890, at which time addresses were made by Rev. William G. Tuttle, one of the founders of the ehureh, by several

of the former ministers and a historical address by George A. Sanderson, to whom the writer is indebted for some of the facts here statcd.

In ancient times a carriage was taxed as a luxury. The returns for the years 1786, '87, '88 and '89 show that in each of those years there were but two in town, both chaises, though not recorded as owned by the same persons in every year. The owners were : Captain Jonathan Davis, Mr. Jeremiah Cogswell, Captain David Lawrence.

The owners of slaves for the years 1770-71 were :

Nathan Chase, one slave ; Captain Leonard Whiting, one slave ; Jo- seph Harwood, two slaves; Captain David Lawrence, one slave ; Captain John Russell, one slave; Captain Samuel Preston, one slave; Simon Tuttle, one slave.

A public school appears to have been first estab- lished in 1725, for on March 31st of that year the town voted that the selectmen should provide a school- master and " to agree with him," that is, as to pay. They hired John Powers. The following January the town again voted that there should be a school- master and chose a committee consisting of Deacon [Caleb] Taylor, Lieutenant Lawrence and Walter Powers to hire the school-master and, in connection with the selectmen, to order where the school was to be kept in the several parts of the town -in private houses, of course.

There was but one school, and to be fair to all, it kept in various parts of the town, thus usually mov - ing three times during the short time it kept, which was only three or four months a year in all. In 1727 an article to see if the town would build school-houses was voted down. In 1732 it was voted to have school four months in one place-that is, not to move at all for that year.

From 1755 to 1757 Mr. Phillips Payson was the school-master. He was a graduate of Harvard Col- lege in the class of 1754, of which John Hancock was a member.

From 1758 to 1760 Mr. Samuel Payson was the school- master. He was a Harvard College graduate of 1758.

In May, 1760, the town voted "to abate Mr. Stephen Shattuck the Rates for his Son's Poll ye last year on condition his Son Goes to college the next year." This was no doubt Benjamin Shattuck, who gradu- ated at Harvard College in 1765.

Mr. Stephen Shattuck, Jr., was the school-master in 1761-he may also have been a Harvard graduate, as the class of 1756 contained that name.

As the town did not build school-houses of its own until the year 1796, the schools, during all the years previous, were kept in buildings owned by private in- dividuals, but it appears that school-houses existed which were no doubt fitted up by their owners and leased to the town.

In 1772 it was put to vote to see if the town should be supplied with school-houses, " proper allowance being made to the present proprietors of the School- Houses," but the proposition was defeated.

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LITTLETON.

It appears to have been quite the custom to have the school-masters of this early period Harvard Col- lege graduates who were studying for 'a profession, and sometimes undergraduates, as in 1785 Mr. Elisha Gardner taught in the Centre and graduated at Har- vard the following year.

In 1790 James Green was the school-master. Oc- tober 7, 1795, the town voted to build five school- houses, but in May following reconsidered and voted to build four. The matter was left in the hands of a committee to buy the land and plan the buildings, which was done probably soon after. This, however, did not settle the question of four or five schools, which caused much feeling and seems to have been carried first one way and then another. The contest was between the Centre people and others who wanted a school located there and the residents in the outer portions of the town, who wanted only four, located in the south, east, north and west parts of the town. The matter hung along until February, 1799, when an attempt was made to settle the dispute by leaving out to a committee from neighboring towns the ques- tion whether there should be four or five schools, or what number ; but the proposition was voted down.

This, no doubt, came from Centre people, and at the same meeting a motion to appropriate money for a school, to be kept in the old school-house at the Centre, or give certain inhabitants their proportion of the school money was also voted down.

In May, however, the town voted $100 for " women schools," and to divide it into five equal parts.

In May, 1801, the advocates of four schools again carried the day, and it was voted not to build a school- house in the Centre.

In March of the next year the Centre got its por- tion of the money for a " woman school " for summer, but in October the town refused them any.

In March, 1808, the appropriation for schools was $400 for Grammar School, $150 for Woman School- and these meagre sums were more than had been ap- propriated in some, or perhaps any, previous years.

The four school-houses built in 1796, or there- aboutz, were located as follows: The North was on the great road, east of Beaver Brook, and near the long store, which is now a dwelling-house ; the East, or Newtown, was at the corner of the road, a short distance south of Mr. Eldridge Marshall's house; the South was near Mr. J. A. Priest's; the West was near its present location.

All attempts to get a school permanently located in the Centre failed for many years; but Rev. Mr. Fos- ter was earnest in his efforts for it, and was not the man to give up in such a contest ; furthermore, the North School became overcrowded, at one time as many as 120 scholars attending in 1820-22, while Mr. Ithamar Beard taught. Finally, on the last day of the year 1821, a vote was carried, 51 to 52, to build a school-house near Daniel Kimball's, now Mr. A. P. Hager's, in the Centre, another in Nashoba, near

Shaker Lane, and to move the North, South and Newtown School-houses. This was reconsidered Jan- uary 14th, by a vote of 68 to 53 ; but two weeks later another meeting was held, and the erection of the Centre School-house, though on a different spot, and the removal of the North School-house were agreed to, while other plans submitted by the committee were rejected, and the meeting adjourned to the fol- lowing Thursday, January 31st, at which time the whole matter of school-houses was settled as follows : The Centre School-house to be built on the town land nearly opposite the church, where it stood until it was removed to make way for the town hall and li- brary building, in 1886, and the bricks used in the hall ; the North to be moved to very near the spot occupied by the present North School-house; a new one to be built at Nashoba-still standing, but used as a farm building by Mr. Allen Kimball; Newtown to be moved to Jeremiah Tuttle's land at the foot of the hill, and the South to be moved seventy-eight rods, to very near or at the spot where the railroad cross- ing now is.

The question has been a hard and vexatious one, and when finally settled the shrewd suggestion was made to build the houses of brick to prevent their being moved at any future time. It was immediately carried. In 1831 new school-houses were built in the north and south parts of the town, on the old locations, and in 1832 at Newtown.

In 1831 began the attempts to get a school-house at the Old Common, which were renewed in various forms, sometimes to get a corporate school district and sometimes to have the town build, until 1843, when, in April, it was voted to build at the Common and move the Nashoba School-house, or to sell it and build another.

This was reconsidercd, but again carried, so far as related to the one at the Common. The Na-hoba matter was put off, but carried the next year, at March meeting, and a school-house built on or near the present location. At the same meeting a committee was chosen to confer with the directors of the Fitch- burg Railroad about moving the South School-house, as it was on or close by the location of the track. It was afterwards moved a short distance south.

As we have seen, the location of school-houses has always been a disturbing element in town politics, and any attempted change has called forth repeated and stormy meetings. .

This was the case again shortly after the Civil War, when, after many meetings, it was decided to unite the Centre and Old Common Schools in a graded school, and build the present Union School-house, which was done in 1867. Within the next decade all the other school-houses werc rebuilt. Additions were made in 1888 to the Union School house of a room for the High School, and to the West School- house of another room in order to make a graded school of it.

878

HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

A few yeara ago a High School was established and kept one term a year, for several years, in the old Centre School-house, which had not been used for school purposes for several years after the erection of the Union School-house. Now the High School is a regularly established school, keeping throughout the whole school year, and with a course of study ar- ranged either to fit for college or to give an English course.

The present principal is Mr. C. H. Harriman, who was preceded by Mr. Ira A. Jenkins, Mr. Edwin C. Burbank and Mr. William H. Snyder.

For a few years the High and Centre Grammar Schools were, for lack of accommodations, kept as one school, with Miss Mary G. Tuttle as assistant.

Running back over some seventy years, the follow- ing have been prominent teachers at various times in the public schools :

Miss Josephine Newhall, Miss Nellie M. Jacobs (now Mrs. J. M. Hartwell), Mrs. Ellen F. Johnson, Mr. Albert F. Conant, and his wife (formerly Miss Patten, ot Westford), the Misses White (daughters of Rev. W. H. White), Mr. Frank A. Patch, Mr. Laban Warren, Mr. Warren Bolles, Mr. George Stevens, Rev. William G. Tuttle, Mr. Benjamin Kimball, Jr., Rev. Edmund B. Willson (now pastor of the North Society in Salem ) Mr. N. B. Edwards, Mr. Henry Prescott, Mr. D. A. Kimball, Mr. Noyes, Mr. Nathan A. Recd, Mr. Otis C. Wright, Mr. Stearns, Mr. Stone, Mr. Ithamer Beard, Mr. Joel Hoar, Mr. M. S. Hager and Mrs. Sophia K. Harwood (formerly Miss Kim- ball).

THE LITTLETON LYCEUM was organized at a meet- ing in the Centre School-house, Monday evening, December 21, 1829, after several preliminary meet- ings had been held, at one of which a constitution had been adopted. The officers chosen were Rev. William H. White, president ; Rev. Amasa Sander- son, first vice-president ; Hon. Jonathan Hartwell, second vice-president ; Col. Nahum Harwood, treas- urer; Deacon John M. Hartwell, recording secretary; Mr. Joel Hoar, corresponding secretary ; Mr. Ben- jamin Kimball, Deacon Thomas S. Tuttle, Mr. Nathan Hartwell, curators.

The object of the Lyceum, as stated in the pream- ble of the constitution, was as follows: "We, the sub- scribers, feeling desirous of affording every possible facility for the improvement of our schools, feeling the importance of personal cultivation and the gen- eral diffusion of useful knowledge, and believing these objects can be best accomplished by united and con- tinued efforts, agree to form a society, under the name of 'The Littleton Lyceum.'"

The founders were the leading men of the town at that time. Rev. Mr. White may be considered the father of the society, and for twenty-three years was its president.

The literary work of the Lyceum began January 5, 1830, with parsing and criticism and reading from

the North American Review. January 12th there was reading by the first classes of the schools throughout the town, and the reading of a portion of Hall's lec- tures on School-keeping. January 19th began a course of three lectures on Astronomy, by Mr. Abel Fletcher, of Boxborough. Two more evenings were occupied by reading on School-keeping, and one by a debate.

From that year down to and including the present the Lyceum has continued and flourished cach year without a break, the only one of the many lyceums formed about that time throughout the State which has done so without the lapse of a year or more.

The exercises have changed somewhat, and of late years take more the form of a course of popular lec- tures and concerts, with, occasionally, a debate or an evening occupied by the schools, as a reminder of the original custom and purpose of the Lyceum. There is no permanent fund, and the money for the support of its lectures is raised each year either by the sale of tickets or by popular subscription-the more usual manner-and in that case the lectures are free . and public to all.

During the winter months, Tuesday evening is, by common consent, assigned and set apart for the Ly- ceum, and rash, indeed, would be any one who should appoint any other public meeting for that evening.

Among the names of those who have lectured be- fore the Lyceum are Ralph Waldo Emerson, Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes, Mr. E. P. Whipple, Rev. James Freeman Clarke, Mr. A. Bronson Alcott, Judge E. R. Hoar, Mr. C. C. Coffin, Prest. C. C. Fel- ton, Wendell Phillips, Mrs. Mary A. Livermore, Col. T. W. Higginson, Rev. E. E. Hale, Rev. Dr. E. H. Chapin, Rev. E. S. Gannett, Hon. N. P. Banks, Hon. Geo. S. Boutwell, Hon. John D. Long, Hon. Geo. B. Loring, Prof. Morse, Col. Thomas W. Knox, Hon. Wm. Parsons and a long list of other prominent men.

In 1879 the semi-centennial of the Lyceum was celebrated on December 23d. On that occasion Hon. Geo. W. Sanderson presided. An historical address was delivered by Miss Hannah P. Dodge, to whom the writer is indebted as authority, and other addresses were made by Hon. Geo. S. Boutwell, Hon. Geo. Stevens and Rev. Edmund B. Willson. The proceed- ings, including letters from invited guests, were printed in pamphlet form.

Littleton people are justly proud of this honored institution, which has been so well supported and has added much to the culture of the town.

It is interesting to relate the traditions about sev- eral of the large trees which beautify the town and are among the few landmarks connecting us with the past.

The great elm on Mr. John A. Kimball's land, near the mill-pond, marks the spot where lived Samuel Dudley, the first town clerk, and whose most excel- lent wife was cruelly accused of witchcraft.

The two largest elins on Colonel Joseph A. Har-

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wood's lawn were set out by his grandfather, Captain Joseph Harwood, the younger, who, when a young man of about seventeen years, dug them up in the woods, carried them on his back and set them out where they stand, as well as two others which time has long since removed.

The elm by the house of Dr. R. H. Phelps, the most beautiful tree in town, was set out by Captain Kidder to serve the practical purposes of hitching- post and shade for his horse when he came to meet- ing. It is estimated to have been set out about the year 1810.

Captain Kidder kept the Tremont Tavern on the spot where the Baptist parsonage stands, and after- wards built the house owned by Mr. John W. Adams and occupied by him at the time it was burned by Seribner, the incendiary, in 1883.

The elm tree by the Baptist parsonage was set out by Mrs. Nye, the mother of the late Mr. Thomas Nye.

The elm tree on the sidewalk between Mr. Everett E. Kimball's and Mr. William Grimes' is the ' Rogers Tree," so named by Mrs. Zadoc Rogers, who lived where Mr. Grimes does, and paid some young men five dollars to set it out where she designated.

The ash tree near the town hall door came from the valley on the west side of Long Pond and was brought on the shoulders of one of the young men of that time. Many of our older residents will remember a very large elm which formerly stood in the rear of the house of Mr. Eugene Felch. That tree was a memento of the courtship of John Hartwell and Mary Dix. Mr. Hartwell came along the road one day carrying some small elm trees, and meeting the lady who afterwards became his wife, gave her one which she set out, and which grew to immense size, and under it they both lived and died. The row of maples in the Centre, beginning at the Rogers tree and extending south on Foster Street, was set out in 1861. Littleton's record in the War of the Rebell- ion has not heretofore been fully compiled, as the town has only a partial list of the men who served as representing Littleton. The names here given, however, are believed to include all, both residents and others, accredited to the town as volunteers.

General Schouler in his " History of Massachusetts in the Rebellion," states that the whole number of men furnished by the town during the war was 117, a surplus of eighteen above the quota, but the follow- ing fifty-six are all the names which appear on the town book of record :

Charles E. Beard, Warren B. Ball, Daniel Brown, Luther Battles, Joseph A. Batterfield, Marcus Conant, [Maj. ] Sherman Conant, Edward J. Card, James Costello. George W. Clark. Theodore C. Clark, Isaac N. Dodge, James L. Durant. Hallowell R. Dunham, [Sergt.] James T. Estes, Daniel C. Fletcher, Charles Franklin, William L. Flagg, John Fowley, Warren W. Gilson, [sergt.] Francis W. Goodwin, Barney Golden, Edward Golden, John S. Hartwell, Charles H. Holton, Elbridge HI. Jefte, Charles S. Jefts, Sherman II. Jewett, Ahel H. Jones, [Corp.] Geo. W. Knowlton, John MI. Kidder, Henry A. Lawrence, George A. Loring, Calvin L. Latham, [Corp.] Albert B. Marshall, Patrick Moore, Nicholas (Neal, [Corp.] George H. Patch, [Lient.] Cyrus P. Pickard, [Corp.]

Herbert E. Preston, Oscar Preston, Ralph W. Parker, James Powers, [Corp. ] Charles W. Reed, [Lieut ] George A. Reed, [Sergt.] Albert W. Robbins, [Corp. ] Luther R. Searles, James C. Smith, Nathan E. Tuttle, [Corp.] Adams W. Tuttle, [Corp.] William C. Turner, Allen P. Whit. comb, Nahum H. Whitcomb, [Corp.] George L. Whitcomb, George White, Henry S. Willard.

The following forty-nine additional names have been collected by the author after careful and diligent search.

Corp. Edward D. Battles, Henry Bode, Charles P. Buckley, Ilenry O. Burnham, Edward Cameron, Hugh Casey, Corp. John Clark, Hugh Connolly, John Curran, George M. Downs, IIenson Dyson, Edwin C. Field, Thomas Geary, Michael Gubbins, William Haley, John Hawkins, John Henderson, Thomas Jones, Julius Keiser, Balthasa Kellar, Joseph Kleehamer, Stephen B. Knights, Charles A Long, Edmund Maunder, Jacob McAtee, Edward C. Magoren, Charles Mccarthy, Eben S. Mc- Cleary, Alexander McGregor, George C. Monroe, Darius H. C. Nelson, Corp. James O'Brien, Cornelius O'Connor, William Parker, Calvin R. Paige, Asst. Surg. Isaiah L. Pickard, Sergt. Comfort Preston, Austin Richardson, Albert J. Robbins, Frederick Shaffer, Patrick Shorey, George Smith, William Smith, James Sweeney, John D. Sanborn, Homer A. Warren, Anton Winch, August Vanderhyde, Edward Vansicklen.

Some of these never resided in town, and were merely engaged to fill the quota, or as substitutes from wherever they happened to come, without regard to residence. The number 117 was no doubt made up by re-enlistments, of which there were several.

The first town-meeting to consider matters relating to the war was held May 1, 1861, when it was voted to raise by taxation $1000, and the selectmen were authorized to borrow $2000, if needed, to pay each soldier belonging to the town $10 a month while in the service, and to provide for their families.

In July a committee, consisting of the selectmen, who were John F. Robbins, John Cutter and James A. Parker, with the addition of Dea. Richard Hall, Francis P. Knowlton, Dea. Thomas S. Tuttle and Benjamin Edwards, were chosen to expend the money appropriated at the previous meeting.

A year later, in July, 1862, a bounty of $100 was voted to each volunteer for three years' service, and again, a year later, in August, 1863, the bounty was raised to $125.

At the same meeting resolutions were passed appro- priate to the death of Nahum H. Whitcomb, of the Sixth Massachusetts Regiment, who was killed at Suffolk, Va., and the town voted to pay the expense of bringing home and interring his remains.

The town continued recruiting and paying bounties during the remainder of the war, and expended, ex- clusive of State aid, $11,104.33.

In 1863-64-65 the selectmen were Joseph A. Priest, William Kimball and George W. Sanderson.

Though a small boy at the time, the writer weil re- members the impressive citizens' nieeting in Central Hall when the first volunteers, enlisted for nine months, took their departure. Speeches were made by prominent citizens, and the soldiers appeared in their new uniforms.

A Soldiers' Aid Society was formed under the pres- idency of Mrs. S. B. White, widow of Rev. Wm. H. White, and many boxes of clothing, bandages and comforts were forwarded to the seat of war.

880

HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

LIBRARIES .- One of the earliest public libraries in this State was in Littleton, and was established pre- vious to 1827, probably by an association. It was a small collection of books, several being on theology ; there were also Josephus' "History of the Jews," "Gil Blas," with some of Scott's and other novels of a standard character, and was kept on a set of three or four shelves which were placed in the house of the person having them in charge for the time being, and given out to any citizen who called for thein.

At the date above mentioned the library was kept in the house of Mr. Timothy Prescott, who lived in the Rogers house, on the spot where Mr. George Whitcomb now lives. The books were sold at auction in 1834 or '35. About this time was established another library which was in charge of Dea. James Kimball, town clerk in the house now occupied and owned by Mr. A. P. Hager, until the evening of Jan. 1, 1847, when the books were sold at auction and bought by different people in town. Many of the books are still in existence, and the writer has seen one with the original book-plate headed "Littleton Town Library " on the inside cover.

An agricultural library was also established, prob- ably after the sale of the town library, and kept an assortment of books on subjects of interest to farmers on some shelves in the Centre store. This library was maintained and owned by an association, and was more of a book club than a public library.

For several years previous to the foundation of the Reuben Hoar Library the case containing the agri- cultural library, the books of which were little, if any read, had been kept in the old brick Centre School- house, which was used as a town office, and had also a vault for town books and records in it.

These were all turned into the Reuben Hoar Li- brary, together with many books belonging to the town, which were in charge of the selectmen, and had also been kept in the brick school-house.

This lot of town books contained many valuable sets which had been issued by the State from time to time, such as the Massachusetts and Plymouth Colony Records, Hitchcock's "Ichnology of New England," and others.

We now come to the Reuben Hoar Library. Some time during the fall or early winter of 1884 a gentle- man who desired to remain unknown communicated to Dea. George W. Tuttle his desire to assist in founding a free public library in Littleton, and re- quested Mr. Tuttle to consult with several citizens as to the best way to proceed, at the same time express- ing his willingness to give the sum of $10,000 under certain conditions.

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History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. II, Part 208

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