USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > Needham > History of Needham, Massachusetts, 1711-1911 : including West Needham, now the town of Wellesley, to its separation from Needham in 1881, with some reference to its affairs to 1911 > Part 47
USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > Wellesley > History of Needham, Massachusetts, 1711-1911 : including West Needham, now the town of Wellesley, to its separation from Needham in 1881, with some reference to its affairs to 1911 > Part 47
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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
Esther Flagg, September II, 1866, aged ninety-two years, sixteen days.
Margaret Glancy, February 21, 1869, aged ninety-six years; born in Ireland.
Elijah Woodcock, April 13, 1872, aged ninety-three years, three months, two days.
Lewis Jones, November 4, 1872, aged ninety-four years; born in Roxbury.
Olive Colburn, January 30, 1873, aged ninety-one years, eleven months, three days; born in Dover.
Henry Clark, November 3, 1873, aged ninety-two years, eleven months, ten days; born in Lexington.
Betsey Bowers, October 4, 1875, aged ninety-one years, ten months, nineteen days; born in Pepperell.
Sarah Nay, December 23, 1878, aged ninety-three years, ten months, two days; born in Canaan, N. H.
Rachel B. Gay, May 6, 1879, aged ninety-three years, six months, eighteen days; born in Dover.
Jane D. (Hunt) Lamb, June 20, 1882, aged ninety-six years, ten months; born in Maquoit, Me.
Elizabeth (Fleming) Risk, September 16, 1887, aged ninety years, three months, seventeen days; born in Scot- land.
Sarah (Clapp) Davenport, August 16, 1889, aged ninety- five years, four months, twenty-one days; born in Dor- chester.
Mary Nixon, December 4, 1893, aged ninety-two years.
John Henderson, March 9, 1896, aged ninety-one years, twenty-seven days; born in Ireland.
Caroline Enslin Blackman, November 27, 1897, aged ninety-three years, nine months, nineteen days; born in Boston.
William H. Beckwith, March 24, 1898, aged ninety-one years, seven months, eight days; born in Halifax, N. S.
Elizabeth Kivlan Obryan, September 7, 1903, aged ninety- one years, one month, one day; born in Ireland.
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Israel D. Woodbury, January 15, 1904, aged ninety years, ten months, eight days; born in North Beverly.
William T. Eldridge, May 25, 1906, aged ninety years, three months, four days; born in Sharon, N. Y.
George Hiram Gay, January 7, 1907, aged ninety-four years, eleven days.
James M. Shores, April 21, 1907, aged ninety-six years, seventeen days; born in Canton, Conn.
Catherine Dwyer, September II, 1907, aged one hundred and two years; born in Ireland. If her age is correctly stated Mrs. Dwyer is the oldest person that has died in Needham.
Enos Houghton Tucker, December 30, 1907, aged ninety- three years, five months, twenty-five days.
Hannah K. Harding, March 3, 1908, aged ninety years, four months, nineteen days; born in Ashford, Conn.
Allanson C. Potter, June 27, 1908, aged ninety years, seven months, twenty-four days; born in Mannilaus (Man- lius?), N. Y.
Ezra Fuller, January 19, 1909, aged ninety-three years, nine months, ten days.
Calise Roseleau, December 5, 1910, aged ninety-three years; born in Canada.
Lucy Sutherland, December 9, 1910, aged ninety years, three months, six days; born in Shapleigh, Me.
Mary Eliza Crawford, December 10, 1910, aged ninety years, four months, twenty days; born in Union, Conn.
From 1865 to 1910 inclusive there were seven persons who died in their ninetieth year, including Permelia Smith, born in Lynnborough, died in Needham April 8, 1872, aged eighty- nine years, ten months and seventeen days, Betsey Gage Kimball, born in Bradford, died November II, 1873, aged eighty-nine years, nine months and fifteen days, Anna (Spencer) Blasland, born in New Haven, Conn., died August 25, 1876, aged eighty-nine years, nine months and one day, James Smith, born in Needham, died March 28, 1894, aged eighty-nine years, eleven months, twenty-four
PORTRAIT OF MR. GEORGE HIRAM GAY, OF THE HONORABLE ENOS HOUGHTON TUCKER AND OF MR. EZRA FULLER
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days, Henry Nash, born in England, died April 10, 1906, aged eighty-nine years, eight months and three days, Winthrop F. White, born in Acton, died May 29, 1907, aged eighty-nine years, eight months and nineteen days.
There were also seventeen persons died from 1865 to 1910 who were in their eighty-ninth year, and of these was Hiram Carr, a native of North Haverhill, N. H., a venerable and familiar figure in the streets of our principal village. Mr. Carr died October 19, 1906, aged eighty-eight years, nine months and nine days.
On October 30, 1906, George H. Gay, then aged ninety-four years, the Honorable Enos H. Tucker, ninety-two years and nearly four months, and Ezra Fuller, ninety-one years and seven months, lacking some days, were photographed to- gether on Mr. Fuller's grounds. All three were born in Needham, and with the exception of some years that Mr. Tucker was away, when in his prime, they all passed their entire lives in Needham. At the funeral of Mr. Gay a large bust of the First Napoleon, "Who [did] bestride the narrow world like a Colossus" when our venerable citizen was born, stood on the mantel near the head of the casket. Mr. Tucker and the writer sat together at the foot.
"Like shadows gliding o'er the plain, Or clouds that roll successive on, Man's busy generations pass; And while we gaze, their forms are gone.
'He lived, - he died'; behold the sum, The abstract of the historian's page! Alike, in God's all-seeing eye, The infant's day, the patriarch's age." JOHN TAYLOR.
FRANCIS ASBURY BURRILL
Needham has had its share of original characters whose sayings or conduct would furnish materials for entertaining sketches. The writer knew many of these persons who were
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living in the last century, and has heard anecdotes of others, but there are relatives or friends to be considered. Most of these quaint or peculiar individuals belonged to fairly well-to-do families, and but few to the small element that may be described as degenerate representatives of the old New England stock. The latter are an interesting study, and exist chiefly in the more remote towns. They appear to have found no opportunities in this country, and to be badly "run out", although in some instances the first two or three generations in the New World were respected. There seems to be no reason why a brief biography of "Frank" Burrill should not be included in the town history, and certainly he was as versatile a "Jack of all trades", and as well known in the town, until within a few years, as any man within its limits. He was born at the town- farm on September 16, 1830, and represented three great races, - the Caucasian, the American Indian and the African. According to the town records his maternal ancestry was of mixed Indian and African descent. His name was recorded as William Wyman,1 but Mrs. Susan Burrill, an excellent woman, who lived on the Robert Fuller place, and near the poor-farm, was attracted to him because he was "such a pretty baby", and took him to her home. Mrs. Burrill had no children, and after a time adopted this infant, although her husband positively declined to have any part in the transaction. She named him Francis Asbury, in honor of the great Methodist divine, but the child's beauty did not last, and he grew to be rather a trial to his adopted mother, but was useful at times, as he was always the first to appear on important occasions, such as fires, where he was conspicuous. There are stories of his bravery, or recklessness, not only at fires, but when other opportuni- ties for getting killed presented themselves.
Forty years ago it was the custom for the boys and young
1 Mrs. Burrill had his birth recorded under his new name, and this time the date of birth is September 17.
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men to gather on the triangle near the Church and play "three old cat" and scrub, and Frank joined them in their games till he was approaching fifty, his peculiar laugh resounding throughout the neighborhood. When less than twelve years old the writer was accustomed to play ball with Frank. This "common" is now private property, but prior to 1895 it belonged to the First Parish. For years Frank rang the Church bell to announce deaths, Sunday services, fires, and whenever there was an opportunity to ring it, particularly on the Fourth of July, when he was one of the noisiest persons in the town. The tall flag-pole was of especial interest to him, and he had charge of the flag. He was handy with tools and with machinery, and did a good deal of "tinkering" without pay, in consequence of judicious flattery. In a few instances he engaged in com- bats, the most elaborate of which was a duel fought with revolvers on North Hill one pleasant afternoon. The neigh- borhood was agitated by this momentous meeting, but as it was before the days of telephones it was some time before Officer Wragg arrived, and shots had been fired, though without the result hoped for by some people. During the excitement Frank repeatedly called out, "Stand up to it like a man", his opponent replying, "A life for a life". Frank never went to jail till he was about seventy years old, when an unappreciative corporation refused to recog- nize him as a privileged character, and resented his building a wall across its street railway at the foot of a hill. Mrs. Burrill left her real estate to the Methodists, subject to the life rights of Frank, and for thirty years the house was rented, Frank living in a shop which he built on the premises. Young men and boys annoyed him at times in his latter years, and he resorted to fire-arms, evidently not shooting to kill, although in at least one instance he wounded a boy. The father of the injured youth was at first somewhat annoyed by the "accident", but soon took a reasonable view of the affair, and there was no further reference to it.
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Early in 1906 Frank was discovered ill in bed with the fire out, and the town physician was sent for, who on his arrival pronounced the disease to be pneumonia, and advised that the patient should be taken to a hospital, but Frank said that he preferred to stay in the shop. That winter several active men in the prime of life had died of this dread sickness in Needham, and the doctor, who was an excellent one, is said to have taken a gloomy view of his patient's prospects, saying that there was no use giving stimulants unless he gave a gallon at a time, but in a month Frank went personally to Natick to procure "supplies". He died after a brief illness February 25, 1908, in his seventy- eighth year, and his funeral, which was held in a marvel- lously cold place, was attended by the chairman of the selectmen, Edgar H. Bowers, by the writer, and by several other persons who felt an interest in Frank. Requiescat in pace. The town has had many a citizen who was a worse man than old Frank.
Visit of President Washington to Reedham
It has been said that General Washington passed through West Needham on his way to Cambridge in 1775; whether he did so or not he was in Needham on the morning of No- vember 6, 1789, on his return to New York from his Presiden- tial tour of Massachusetts and New Hampshire. He had passed the night of the 5th in Watertown, and dined on the 6th at Sherburne, now Sherborn. These facts are from the President's diary. At the Needham town line he was met by a cavalcade headed by his former companion-in-arms, Col. William McIntosh, whom he is said to have recognized at once. It was a day when rain or snow was threatening. The tradition is that the President stopped at Needham Lower Falls, under the elm that since has borne his name, and that he drank from the ancient well and praised the quality of the water. He proceeded to Sherburne along the street that for many years has been Washington Street. This old well was filled by Charles Rice, who planted a tree above it, and Frederick Curtis has a sketch, made about 1844, of the house which stood in the shade of the Washing- ton elm. This house was unpainted, and was sometimes called the "Black House". It was a typical early eighteenth century dwelling, with the roof sloping nearly to the ground.
THE CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION
This was observed at the Meeting-house on November 16, 18II, and Mr. Palmer preached his admirable and well- known "Century Sermon", which was printed in December
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by Herman Mann of Dedham. On April 6, 1812, the town chose Dr. Samuel Gould, Daniel Ware, Esq., and Isaac Shepard, Esq., "a Committee to exprefs their gratitude to the Revd. Stephen Palmer for his extraordinary exertions in preparing and delivering his Sermon which Comprises an accurate history of the Town". Mr. Palmer gracefully acknowledged a letter from this committee, and also ad- dressed an able letter to the people of Needham, which is worthy to be read by later generations. On May II the town voted to receive these letters, which were recorded. The town possesses Mr. Palmer's original letter, dated April 25, 1812, acknowledging the thanks of the committee. Apparently only one hundred copies of the sermon were printed, of which the town voted fifty to Mr. Palmer, six to the Rev. Mr. Noyes, and the balance of the edition to the town treasurer to dispose of.
OLD HOME CELEBRATION
In 1902 August 31, September I and 2 were devoted to an "Old Home Week" celebration. The plan for this home- coming was presented by the Rev. Robert L. Webb at a town meeting held on June 16, 1902, and a committee of five were then appointed to select one of twenty-five to arrange for it, the expenses to be met by private subscrip- tions. At the first meeting of the committee of twenty- five, known as the "General Committee", they named an "Executive Committee" of six, of which the Rev. Mr. Webb was the chairman, and three other committees, and later appointed seven more committees. The Executive Committee chose Henry D. Blackman as secretary and John F. Mills as treasurer, and all of the various committees did efficient work. The celebration began on Sunday, which was a beautiful day, with appropriate services in the Churches. On Monday, and again on Tuesday, the bells in the Churches rang at sunrise, and at half past nine on Monday Howard A. Crossman and J. Emery Coulter of the
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"Excursion Committee" took charge of a party of twenty- five persons in four carriages and visited twenty-four points of historical interest in the town, including the Townsend house. Ten large signs had been placed indicating the site of the first meeting-house, of the old training-field and other historic places, and the party were accompanied by John F. Mills, whose knowledge of the town is exceptional, and who did much to make the celebration a success. Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Whitaker received and refreshed the sight- seers at the Hillside Farm, and the three hours' drive was much enjoyed. During the forenoon there were sports, including a ball game on Washburn's Field. The Brookline Band furnished music during the sports. In the evening fully five hundred persons assembled in the town hall to hear the historical address of George Kuhn Clarke, who had been chosen Historian by the General Committee. The local papers spoke highly of this address, and it was printed practically in full in the Needham Recorder and in other papers. After the conclusion of the address there were other speakers in answer to invitations from the presiding officer, who was Dr. Albert E. Miller, and John T. Wye read an original poem entitled "Our Dear Old Home". On the platform were seated several guests, and prominent citizens of the town, including the Honorable Enos H. Tucker, then in his eighty-ninth year. The decorations, arranged by a committee of which Armand J. Mathey was the chairman, deservedly attracted much attention. The Webster Quartet furnished music. On Tuesday there was a party to visit places of interest, similar to that on Monday, and which started at ten o'clock; they were given refresh- ments by John A. Tilton and by Mrs. Curtis McIntosh. Late on Tuesday afternoon was laid the corner-stone of the new town hall by the Grand Lodge of Masons of Massa- chusetts, the members of the board of selectmen and the building committee participating. Fully three thousand persons witnessed these impressive ceremonies, which had
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been preceded by a procession headed by Dodge's Cadet Band of Natick, which gave a concert from five to six P.M. on the common. Later there was a collation for the Masons and others in the town hall, and in the evening the town officers had a reception in that hall, followed by addresses by ex-Mayor Charles H. Coulter of Brockton, William Carter and others. Prizes for success in the various games were awarded by the Honorable Emery Grover, who had been prominent at the laying of the corner-stone of the new hall. Prizes were also given to Thomas J. Crossman and to Armand J. Mathey, the former in recognition of his having the best decorated store, and the latter the best decorated house. Edgar H. Bowers, the chairman of the selectmen, presided on Tuesday evening, and Knowlton & Allen's orchestra furnished the music. There was enthu- siasm for the Rev. Mr. Webb, who had been the leader in planning and carrying out the programme, and he was called upon at a late hour to speak. The "Old Home Week" ended with a social dance in the hall. The weather was fine during the three days of the celebration, which was a great success, and attended by many former residents of Needham, including Josiah H. Carter, who was upward of ninety years of age and had been a town officer in Need- ham prior to 1850.
BICENTENNIAL CELEBRATION
No attempt has been made to give in this town history an account of the elaborate Bicentennial celebration by the Town of Needham in September, 1911, as a volume descrip- tive of those memorable days is to be issued by the town, but it is desirable to record what occurred in November, 19II, when the real birthday was observed. On November 15 the bell of the First Church was rung in recognition of the fact that it was first heard on November 15, 1811, and on the 17th, the anniversary of the Incorporation of the Town, the various bells were rung and flags were dis-
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played. In the evening the Needham Historical Society met in the First Church, when the charter members signed the by-laws, and listened to the reading of a portion of the Rev. Stephen Palmer's Century Sermon and also an ex- tract from his sermon commemorative of Colonel William McIntosh.
On the evening of the 20th the Music Study Class of Needham gave a musical play in Bourne Hall, the title being "Nehoiden " and the scene High Rock Woods prior to 1680. This play was written by Mrs. William C. Moseley, who adapted old English and Indian melodies and ballads to it. Several of the performers excel as singers and the acting was good; all of the parts were taken by women. "William Nehoiden " wore the ancient powder- horn owned by Sumner B. Mills, and said to have once been the property of the Indian Nehoiden (or Hahaton).
NEEDHAM AUTHORS
In 1765 Elizabeth Harris wrote verse inspired by the death of friends, and twenty years later Caleb Fisher, a native of Dedham, but who lived in Needham, wrote in the Byronic strain about women, the poet then having reached the discriminating age of fifteen years.
There have been two ministers of the Church in the West Precinct who have been conspicuous as writers, the Rev. Harvey Newcomb and the Rev. Abijah R. Baker. Mr. Newcomb was the author of one hundred and seventy- eight books, all of a religious character, and chiefly for the use of young people, particularly for Sunday Schools. Two of these books had a circulation of thirty-four thousand copies each, and others were nearly as popular. Mr. New- comb's great work, which is still an authority, is the "Cyclo- pedia of Missions", 784 pages, published by Scribners, 1854. Mr. Baker was brilliant and versatile, and wrote a number of books for Sunday School use. Of these "The Catechism Tested by the Bible" had had a sale of half a million copies
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to the year 1871, and was published in six different languages, including Arabic and Hawaiian. In Hawaii the use of this book was established by the Government. President Lin- coln said that he had taught from the religious text-books of Mr. Baker, and that he especially liked "Tim the Scis- sors Grinder", the first in a series of popular stories written by Mrs. Baker. She was Harriette Newell Woods, daughter of Professor Leonard Woods of Andover, and was the author of two, hundred volumes, mostly religious novels. Wash- ington Irving referred to certain of her writings in terms of praise. The Rev. Mr. Baker wrote "Divine Sovereignty in Human Salvation", which required thirty editions to satisfy the demand. Other books of his were a success, and his printed sermons and addresses numerous. Dr. William Thomas Green Morton, the discoverer of the use of Ether as an anæsthetic, published comparatively little, but his friend Mr. Rice wrote an interesting volume entitled "Trials of a Public Benefactor, as Illustrated in the Discovery of Etherization", 1859. This book gives an account of the troubled life of Dr. Morton.
A complete list of the books, pamphlets and magazine articles written by residents of Needham during the cen- tury ending in 1911, would be undoubtedly a long one, and, as is the case with the fauna and flora of the town, must be prepared by others than the writer of this history. The establishment of Wellesley College added to the list of authors in Needham, both of prose and verse, and within the limits of the present town there have been no less than fifteen persons who have written verse during the past forty years, and much of it has been printed.
NEWSPAPERS AND PERIODICALS
Between October, 1868, and December, 1870, Charles E. Keith published five numbers of The Sierra Magazine, purporting to be issued in Needham and San Francisco. These numbers contained in all about one hundred and
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twelve pages, and were devoted to poetry and miscellaneous matter written by Mr. Keith. In January, 1871, appeared the first number of The Beautiful World, which Mr. Keith intended for a semi-annual, and which was entirely filled with verses. As a matter of fact this periodical was limited to six numbers, the second appearing in October, 1871, and the last in July, 1873, the average number of pages being about twenty-two. The first issue of The Sierra Magazine had contained lines addressed to Lake Cochituate, and verses on High Rock and on Needham. These contribu- tions to the magazine were of considerable length, and the two latter are found also in the final number of The Beautiful World, the verses describing Needham having undergone some alteration in the mean time. All of these pamphlets were issued in book form by C. E. Keith & Co., 36 Bromfield Street, Boston: 1873, and were preceded by a Memoir of Royal Keith, with a genealogy.
In 1874 George W. Southworth, a native of Stoughton, established a printing office in Needham, and on Saturday, November 28, issued the first number of the Needham Chron- icle and Wellesley Advertiser, which after May 21, 1881, that being the date of the last issue under the original name, became the Needham Chronicle without the words "and Wellesley Advertiser", and to the present time has continued the principal source of local news for many of the citizens of this town. The paper has been changed and enlarged several times, and presents an attractive appearance. Mr. Southworth has the reputation of using good type, and a much higher grade of paper than is customary. This print- ing plant has been one of the features of Needham since 1874, and most of the town printing has been done there. The excellent quality of the paper used is shown by the good condition of the town documents after the lapse of many years. The Dedham Historical Society has the only perfect file of this paper from 1874 to 1897 that is known to the writer of this history. The office files were burned
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with the Odd Fellows Building in 1887. Mr. Cyrus W. Jones, who is a collector of historical documents, has a file of the Chronicle that lacks only eight or ten numbers prior to the year in the nineties when he ceased to preserve the papers.
The Needham Globe was issued by William G. Moseley on August 1, September I and October 1, 1878, and then ceased.1 The Needham News published by John D. Emmons was limited to Vol. I, No. I, which was issued on Friday, June 9, 1883, and The Needham Enterprise, May 18, 1887, did not exceed one number. The latter was the result of the enterprise of Bowers & Brown, printers, and appeared a day or two after their office in the Odd Fellows Building was destroyed by fire. The first number of the Needham Recorder appeared on December 8, 1894, and this paper has continued to the present time, and is practically an edition of the Natick Citizen, of which William T. Howard of Natick was until recently the editor and proprietor. Both the Chronicle and the Recorder have at times been involved in the storms of local politics, representing opposing factions, or parties, and much has been printed that cannot be accepted by the historian as fair or impartial.
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