USA > Massachusetts > Bristol County > New Bedford > History of New Bedford and its vicinity, 1620-1892 > Part 60
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The present board of trustees is as follows :
William J. Rotch, president; Edmund Rodman. secretary ; Lawrence Grinnell, Thomas R. Rodman, Horatio Hathaway, S. Griffithis Morgan, Thomas M. Stetson, Morgan Rotch, Edmund Grinnell, Frederick Swift, Nathaniel Hathaway, Samuel W. Rodman, William R. Robeson, William Rotch; the last three of Boston.
The Aimwell School (private) was established March 4, 1861, by Mrs. Drucilla P. Knight, and located at 55 North street. It has always been well sustained and has had a yearly average of forty pupils. Among the assistant teachers who have served at the Aimwell are the
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HISTORY OF NEW BEDFORD.
following: Mrs. O. P. Buckley, Mrs. M. P. Sampson, Miss N. P. Un- derwood, Miss Sarah Parker, Mrs. Lucy P. H. Miller, Miss Louisa Heath, Miss Sarah B. Little, Miss Susie Sherman, Miss Sarah Tallman, and Mrs. Annie Howland.
Free Public Library .- This institution is so distinctively and pre- eminently a feature of New Bedford and its history, that words of com- ment preluding a sketch of the origin, development, and achievements of the library, and of those whose efforts have been bent in forwarding its growth and prosperity, seem almost unnecessary. No resident of this city, who has watched the institution advance, step by step, and year by year, to the front rank among the public libraries of the nation, can note the pages of its history without a just feeling of pride.
In 1876, in order to give a fitting educational exhibit of this city at the Centennial in Philadelphia, the common council passed an order giving the necessary authority for carrying out plans to that end. In accordance with that order an historical sketch of the New Bedford Free Public Library was prepared by one whose intimate connection with and interest in the institution fitted him for that task-a man whose memory is familiar to every old resident of New Bedford, who held many positions of trust among its citizens, and who from the first was a staunch friend and advocate of the Free Public Library-the late James Bunker Congdon. To this historical sketch the present article is in- debted for much of its subject matter.
Early in the present century laws were enacted by the Common- wealth of Massachusetts, giving corporate powers to the proprietors of social libraries, many of which had been established in various parts of the Commonwealth, and the condition of which was materially improved by the passage of the act. It was only a natural consequence that the inhabitants of New Bedford, consisting as they did of a highly intel- lectual class of people, should within a few years after the incorporation of the town, take steps toward the procurement of books and reading matter that could be placed in the hands of many of the people who from many causes could not have books of their own. Several combi- nations were formed in New Bedford for this purpose, previous to the passage of the act conferring corporate powers. The proprietors of Dobson's Encyclopædia recognized the advantage of an arrangement
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THE FREE PUBLIC LIBRARY.
with such a combination; and upon the receipt of that work, the people of this town found themselves possessors of a small library in its pages alone. The well-worn volumes now bear ample testimony to the thor- oughness with which its pages were read and consulted.
The Library Society followed. This was a more comprehensive effort. The desire for books had outgrown the ability of Dobson to satisfy. New Bedford was fortunate in having among its people men who could give a profitable direction to that intelligence which needed the assistance of books to supply its craving for gratification and in- crease. In this respect the young and prosperous community was favored beyond the average, in that day, of villages whose population was mainly composed of toilers in the workshop and upon the sea.
The Social Library followed. This was a vigorous, well-directed, and well-managed association. The good sense of all recognized the wisdom of combination, the three associations were united, and the New Bedford Social Library had a long, prosperous, and profitable career.
When the passage of the State law allowed the proprietors to become a body corporate, advantage was taken of its provisions. For nearly half a century, this valuable collection of books was the principal source from whence was supplied the desire of the people for knowledge and intellectual recreation. " Library-day " was always a welcome day. There was in attendance generally a large number of intelligent seekers; and the result of that intercourse with books for which this library pro- vided was a marked and most promising and interesting feature in the characters of the young men and women of New Bedford.
On May 24, 1851, the General Court passed the act to authorize cities and towns to establish and maintain public libraries, and the or- dinance for the establishment and government of a Free Public Library in New Bedford was passed August 16, 1852. The first movement in the undertaking, which was in the shape of a resolution offered by Warren Ladd, a member of the lower branch of the city council, July 8, 1851, was unsuccessful. The order was only to consider the ex- pediency of the measure, and although it passed the common council without a dissenting vote, the other chamber, comprised of the alder- men, non-concurred. This order was introduced but forty-five days after the passage of the enabling act. On May 27, 1852, a large peti-
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HISTORY OF NEW BEDFORD.
tion, headed by James B. Congdon, was presented to the council, re- questing the adoption of the act. The committee on public instruction, to which the matter was referred, reported recommending an appro- priation of $1,500 for the establishment of the library. In its report the committee stated that it had been assured that "provided the au- thorities should, by the passage of the order making the appropriation asked for, establish the principle that the maintenance of a free city library for the continuous education of the people will be the settled policy of the city," the 5,000 volumes of the New Bedford Social Library would be transferred to the city.
But the Free Public Library had, in fact, been established before the presentation of the report. The appropriation bill for the year which had already passed, contained an item of fifteen hundred dollars for the library. Councilman Pitman, who was a member of the committee to whom the petition was referred, had anticipated the favorable action of the council, and had introduced and carried an amendment to the bill making the appropriation as above stated. This amendment was made previous to the presentation of the report of the committee. The ap- propriation bill passed July 20, 1852. The date of the adoption of that amendment is the date of the establishment of the New Bedford Free Public Library.
The library was opened for the use of the people and the delivery of books on Thursday, the third day of March, 1853.
The ordinance establishing the Boston Public Library was passed October 12, 1852, and the doors were opened for the delivery of books on the 2d day of May, 1854.
The number of volumes at the opening was between five and six hundred
It is an interesting and creditable fact, that the New Bedford Free Public Library is the only public library established under the law of 1851 excepting that in Boston, noticed by Edwards in his elaborate " Memoirs of Libraries," published in London in 1859. The corner- stone of the building now occupied by the Free Public Library was laid with simple but impressive ceremonies on August 28, 1856. The principal exercises were an introductory address by George How- land, jr., mayor of the city, an address by James B. Congdon, and a poem by Charles T. Congdon, of New York.
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THE FREE PUBLIC LIBRARY.
In the address of Mr. Congdon, as well as in several of the annual reports, the positions are assumed that the Free Public Library of New Bedford was the first established by order or ordinance under the law of 1851; the first from which books were issued under said law; that the library building was the second whose construction was commenced after its passage; and that prior to its establishment and the delivery of books therefrom, there had never existed a library established and wholly supported and managed by a municipality, free to all the in- habitants, its books for the use, at the library or at home, of all the peo- ple without payment or pledge.
The original building, which at first seemed to be fully adequate to the needs of the library for many years, finally became too confined to accommodate the rapid growth of the number of volumes to be shelved, and the necessary space required for a reading-room. In 1886 a large addition, uniform in architectural construction, was built, joining the old building at right angles at its northern extremity. The entire upper floor is now used for the library proper, and the lower floor is taken up with the office of the mayor, city clerk, city treasurer, city auditor, and board of assessors. The library has been the grateful recipient of several trust funds, established for its benefit. The first of these was that of George Howland, jr., of $1,600, the amount of his salary as mayor for two years. The second constitutes the Charles W. Morgan fund, and its amount is $1,000. Besides these are the Oliver Crocker fund of $1,000, the James B. Congdon fund of $500, the George O. Crocker fund of $10,000, and the Charles L. Wood fund of $2.000. The largest bequest ever left to the library, however, and the one on which the chief dependence of its trustees rests for the addition of new books, is that of Sylvia Ann Howland. Fifty thousand dollars were set apart for the library, the annual income of which is $3,000. Considerable delay attended the litigation of the will of the deceased, and the funds of the estate largely increased. In addition to the be- quest which constitutes the fund, about $10,000 was paid into the city treasury as interest or income, and this was placed to the credit of the library. Upon a large marble tablet in the main reading-room of the library is the following inscription:
" This tablet commemorates the enlightened liberality of Sylvia Ann Howland, who- bestowed upon the city of New Bedford the sum of two hundred thousand dollars; one
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HISTORY OF NEW BEDFORD.
hundred thousand to aid in supplying the city with pure water; and one hundred thou- sand as a fund for the promotion of liberal education by the enlargement of the Free Public Library, and by extending to the children and youth of the city the means of a wider and more generous culture."
It will be seen by this inscription that the whole amount bequeathed to the city of New Bedford by this noble lady was $200,000. One-half the sum was applied toward defraying the cost of construction of the system of water- works. The other half was equally divided, forming the library and educational fund. The total amount of appropriations by the city for the library from 1852 to 1890 was $121.538. The in- stitution has also received the dog tax fund since 1869, which has amounted to $14,888. Starting with about 5,000 or 6,000 volumes, the property of the old Social Library, the number has been swelled to about 60,000 volumes. From 1852 to 1890 there have been given to the library 10,854 books and 16,282 pamphlets. The library contains a number of photographs of the handsome residences of the city, and surrounding the balcony in the main corridor are arranged creditable portraits of several of New Bedford's representative men of days gone by. Among them are George Howland, Charles W. Morgan, Thomas A Greene, George Howland, jr., James B. Congdon, James Arnold, Rowland R. Crocker, and William Rotch.
Robert C. Ingraham was the first librarian, and has held that position continuously to the present time, a period of thirty-nine years. A volume could be written upon the earnest, careful, and persistent labor that Mr. Ingraham has devoted to the institution, and to his credit is due, more than to that of any one else, the present successful system of operating the library, and the high and enviable reputation that it holds among institutions of its class throughout the world. The library is under the direction of the city government, and the following are the officers for 1891: Trustees, ex officio, term expires 1892, Charles S. Ashley, mayor of the city; Joseph Dawson, president of the common council; Henry C. Hathaway, chairman of the committee of the city council on public instruction. Elected by the city council, Isaac B. Tompkins, jr., Matthew C. Julien, Leonard B. Ellis, Arthur G. Grinnell, George H. Dunbar, George Howland, jr. President of the board, the mayor ; clerk, George H. Dunbar ; superintendent of the library, George H. Dunbar; librarian, Robert C. Ingraham ; assistant librarian, William
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NEW BEDFORD LYCEUM.
L. R. Gifford; assistants, Josephine A. Merrick, M. E. Brown, Susie H. Gammons; janitor, Yorick W. Ames.
New Bedford Lyceum .- This society was established November 19, 1828, at a meeting called by James B. Congdon, in the office of the Merchants' Insurance Company. The officers were chosen December 8, as follows: President, Stephen Merrihew; vice-presidents, Abner Bourne and Benjamin Rodman ; treasurer, William T. Hawes; corre- sponding secretary, Francis Rotch ; curators, Charles W. Morgan, Joseph Congdon, Thomas A. Greene; committee of arrangements, Orville Dewey, John H. W. Page, J. W. C. Fleeming. The objects of the lyceum were, in brief: "The improvement of its members in useful knowledge and the advancement of popular education." In the original plan was also included a scheme for the collection of a library, of appa- ratus and a cabinet. The opening exercises, which were held in the "Friends' old meeting-house," December 18, 1828, consisted of an ad- dress by Thomas A. Greene " On the Proposed Objects of the Institu- tion." This address was printed and a copy of the publication is in the possession of the Free Public Library. At this time there were 160 members A movement was soon put under way for the erection of a building for permanent quarters, which was completed and first occu- pied November 27, 1829, at which time the Rev. Orville Dewey deliv- ered an address. The building was on the north side of William street, a few rods west of Purchase, and the cost, including the lot, was about $2,000. In later years it was moved to the opposite side of the street. The society was incorporated under a general law of the State, June 12, 1829, but there was little, if any, change in the constitution, and none in the officers. Lectures were delivered gratuitously, books were pur- chased from time to time, and a library of considerable worth accumu- lated. Later on the great attractive feature of the society was the lect- ures delivered, and a system of tickets, for which a small charge was made, was established, and the membership greatly increased. The hall would no longer accommodate the meetings, and paid lecturers were brought here from other parts. In a report made to the society in 1841, it is stated : "The lyceum has lost its scientific character. The object for which books, apparatus, etc., were collected, no longer exists. Our lecturers are paid for their efforts ; and they no longer depend upon the
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HISTORY OF NEW BEDFORD.
books and apparatus of the institution for assistance." In December, 1845, a new constitution and code of by-laws were adopted, which fully recognized and organized the change which had long since taken place in the essential features of the institution. Larger quarters were re- quired for the accommodation of its meetings, the City Hall, the church of the first Christian Society, and Liberty Hall being many times crowded by those who gathered to hear its course of lectures. Of later years, especially since the close of the civil war, the interest in the society has subsided, and the last entertainments of importance were a series of concerts given under the auspices of the Lyceum Society. The officers hold an annual meeting, however, and those for 1891 are: Charles P. Rugg, president; George F. Kingman, Joseph Buckminster, vice-presidents ; William H. Pitman, clerk; Leonard B. Ellis, L. Le B. Holmes, Thomas R. Rodman, lecture committee ; Gardner T. Sanford, Thomas M. Denham, and William C. Taber, trustees.
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THE JUDICIARY IN EARLY DAYS.
CHAPTER XXIX.
BENCH AND BAR.
Judicial System of the Early Settlers - Primitive Civil Government - Recourse to Courts - First Attorneys - First Mention of Attorneys by the Legislature - Early Laws Governing Attorneys - Paul Dudley Appointed Chief Justice - Legal Character of the Early Bench - Bristol County Lawyers in 1767 - Members of the Bristol Bar in 1779 - The " Old Colony Bar Association " - Members of the Bar in New Bedford in 1834 - Incorporation of Bristol County - Seth Pope, First Justice of the Peace - Thomas Taber - Samuel Willis - Sessions of the Early Courts - New Bedford Es- tablished as a Half Shire Town - First Court of Common Pleas -- County Buildings, Court House, Jail, etc .-- First Police Court - Nathaniel S. Spooner - Present Court House -- Present Courts -- Early Judges - Edward Pope -- Early Lawyers -- Timothy G. Coffin - John S. Russell - Lemuel Williams -- Charles H. Warren -- Ezra Bassett Thomas D. Eliot - Adam Mackie -- H. G. O. Colby -- J. H. W. Page -- Joshua G. Stone -- John H. Williams -- Oliver Prescott - George Marston -- Lincoln F. Brigham -- Robert C. Pitman -- Alanson Borden - Short Sketches of Present Lawyers.
THE origin of the law and the judiciary, of courts and justice, of trial and tribunal, is wrapped in the inaccessible recesses of an- tiquity. Through a multitude of years each generation has witnessed the workings of its peculiar laws wherever civilization and intelligence have existed. The first settlers in this then wilderness land came here, not with the premeditated intention of establishing a judicial sys- tem, but to worship God in their own accepted faith and manner, and to escape the intolerant hierarchy of their native government. These men had no incentive to study or enter into the civil polity of their na- tive country ; they were under the ban of laws and regulations over which they had no power or authority. There was, however, among them, as among all civilized men, a desire for law and order and a sense that this must come from a prime and systematic source. Accordingly a primitive civil government was formed before their footsteps had yet touched the shore, and how peculiarly this government was identified with religious, legislative and judicial problems, only a careful study of its history can reveal. "The legislative and judicial authorities,"
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HISTORY OF NEW BEDFORD.
says Abraham Holmes, " were very improperly mixed together, and it is with difficulty that we can keep our muscles in due subordination when we read some of their legislative provisions, and some of their judicial discussions." It is not unlikely that these men believed attor- neys to be an unnecessary evil. But as population increased and dis- putes and difficulties arose among the inhabitants, it was found abso- lutely impossible to obtain law and order without recourse to courts. Certain men among them, possessed of self-reliant and argumentative qualities, realizing that some one must occupy the position of a defender of the rights of those who were mentally or physically incapacitated to defend themselves, sprang into the character of counselors and defend- ers. They were the sole judges of their own qualifications ; they were under no oath ; they were under no responsibility, either to their cli- ents or to the courts ; they took the name of attorneys and were recog- nized as such by the people. The first mention of attorneys made by the Legislature was in 1663, when it was enacted that no attorney should have a seat in the Legislature. Thirty-eight years went by with no further notice of this profession, when, in 1701, the form of oath to be taken by attorneys, similar to the one taken at admission, was estab- lished by a statute. Fourteen years afterwards, 1715, a law was passed to prohibit any party to a suit from retaining more than two of the sworn attorneys ; that the other party might have similar assistance if he wished it. Various other laws in this connection were passed, but authentic documents that would throw light on the subject are scarce.
Paul Dudley was appointed chief justice of the Superior Court in 1719 by Governor Shute, and it is evident he was at the bar a year or two prior to that date. Robert Auchmuty was soon after at this bar and was much thought of at that time. It was about this time that John Reed, another man of marked ability and extensive acquirements, came to the bar. He was one of the first of the profession in this coun- try to devise some methodical system of practicing law. While Reed was in practice, Benjamin Pratt, afterward chief justice of New York, Elkanah Leonard, of Middleborough, and Col. Samuel White, of Taun- ton, came to the bar. Cotemporary with these was James Otis, of Barnstable, a man of great natural talent. While he was at the bar Timothy Ruggles, Otis Little and Elisha Bisbee entered the arena and
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EARLY COURTS AND LAWYERS.
practiced in all the courts in the Old Colony. The emoluments of the offices at that time were not great enough to induce the most celebrated attorneys to give up to their attraction, and the courts, especially that of Common Pleas, were not composed of such legal characters as have since dignified these benches. But time and circumstances work great changes ; our courts now suffer nothing by comparison with those of any in the world. In early times the whole number of lawyers was very small. According to a list supposed to be correct, published in Mein's and Fleming's register for 1767, there were only four lawyers in Bristol County, viz : Hon. Samuel White, a member of the council, who who died at an advanced age ; Robert T. Payne, Daniel Leonard and George Leonard, of Norton. The only additions made to the bar of this county from the year 1767 to the year 1779, were Edward Pope, Seth Bradford, Laban Wheaton and David Leonard Barnes. These four men, with George Leonard, composed the members of the bar in 1779. The members of the Bristol bar, residents of New Bedford, who died or retired from practice during the years from 1779 to 1834 were Peleg Sprague, John M. Williams, R. H. Williams, Thomas Hammond, James Washburn, John Nye and John S. Russell, and of Dartmouth, H. Slo- cum, jr. About 1794 the members of the bar in the counties of Plym . outh, Bristol and Barnstable formed an association under the name of " The Old Colony Bar." Their object was to establish a uniform sys- tem of practice and regulations, and to determine how long a candidate for admission should study, taking into view his acquirements at the time of application. In deference to a general rule established by the Supreme Judicial Court, the last article was afterward suspended. The association was dissolved by mutual consent, the increase of the mem- bers of the bar making it of little advantage. The Supreme Judicial Court never recognized the association and would never receive their certificates for admission. In 1834 there were practicing at the Bristol County bar, and resident in New Bedford, the following members : Lemuel Williams, Charles H. Warren, Timothy G. Coffin, W J. A. Bradford, Ezra Bassett, John Burrage, Thomas D. Eliot, John H Clif- ford, Oliver Prescott and John H. W. Page. Many of these became famous lawyers, jurists and statesmen.
The County of Bristol was incorporated June 2, 1685, and Seth Pope
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HISTORY OF NEW BEDFORD.
was the first justice of the peace regularly appointed to perform the du- ties of that office in the original town of Dartmouth. He was chosen to the office May 20, 1690, and was known as a "county magistrate." It is probable that a few of the duties usually devolving on a justice of the peace may have been performed by some specially chosen person prior to that time, but who simply carried out the instructions of certain specified acts. In 1692 Plymouth Colony practically became a part of the Province of Massachusetts Bay, with Sir William Phipps as gov- ernor, and the office of " county magistrate " was thenceforth known by the title of justice of the peace, and was no longer elective by the people, but became an appointive office of the governor. On May 27, 1692, Governor Phipps appointed justices of the peace for the County of Bristol as follows : John Saffin, of Bristol ; John Brown, of Swanzey ; Thomas Leonard, of Taunton; Joseph Church, of Little Compton, and Seth Pope, of Dartmouth. Seth Pope's commission as justice of the peace was renewed by Gov. Joseph Dudley November 8, 1707, Febru- ary 25, 1709, and December 10, 1715, and by Gov. Samuel Shute No- vember 12, 1717. He was a selectman in the town of Dartmouth in 1685, 1686, 1687 1689, 1699, 1702 and 1705, and his name frequently appears with the title of colonel, from which it appears he was promoted from the rank of lieutenant, which commission he received June 4, I686.
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