History of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 121

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1534

USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > History of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men > Part 121

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

Upon the actual commencement of hostilities, as will be seen, the town took prompt and decided meas- ures to perform its whole duty in carrying into effect its resolutions of the previous years, and to obtain the independence of the country. Men and money were freely raised and sent forward at the call of the Con- tinental and Provincial authorities.

Declaration of Independence .- The Declaration of Independence was entered in full upon the town records, and read from both pulpits upon the next Lord's day after its reception. Measures were also taken to prevent a monopoly in articles of necessity, and to guard against extortion, and the prices at which these articles were to be sold were fixed by the town.

Bounties .- At a meeting held Feb. 21, 1777, to encourage enlistments for a longer term than those of previous years, it was voted to pay each soldier enlisting in the Continental service for three years, or during the war, seventy-four pounds addi- tional. On the 17th of March it was voted to pay each soldier six pounds who was in the Northern army for a year. The committee was instructed to inquire " why some of our soldiers came from York before their time was up," and these were not to draw their pay until the committee had made its report.

On the 14th of May, it was voted to pay "six pounds per month, for eight months, for men who enlist in the provincial or Continental service, and deserters were to forfeit all right to their wages." On the 21st of the same month, a thousand pounds was voted to raise men for the Continental army, and a

committee of three chosen to hire men from out of town. No one member was to pay more than thirty pounds per man without the consent of another. On the 18th of August the town voted to add four pounds, ten shillings per month to the pay of each soldier from the time of marching to his return, allow- ing twenty miles for a day's march. Three hundred pounds more were also raised for men for the Conti- nental service; and on the 25th of August the wages of soldiers were raised to twelve pounds per month until the 1st of November.

On the 22d of September, by vote of the town, men were not to be drafted for the army, and those who entered the service in the previous September were to be allowed forty shillings per month to make their pay equal to that of the men hired by the town. Men were becoming scarce and more difficulty was found in obtaining them, consequently greater in- ducements must be offered. On the 6th of Novem- ber, Capts. Samuel Ward and Thomas Nash were in- structed to raise men at the best rate they could to guard prisoners, to serve until the 1st of April next ; and another levy of eighty pounds was made.

On the 10th of November, under a further call for soldiers, it was voted to " pay them four pounds in case they can't be had for less, and forty shillings for rations to find themselves in case the State does not find them," and for this purpose seventy-five pounds were voted.

At a meeting held on the 2d of March, 1778, it was found so difficult to raise the necessary number of men demanded of the town that a committee was constituted to devise an easier method of doing it ; but notwithstanding their utmost exertions, the trou- ble met them face to face. Men must be had, and no men were to be found. Committees were ap- pointed to assist the officers in procuring enlistments, but the men came slowly and only upon the offer of superior inducements. The war was lingering on much longer than any had at first supposed, and with no immediate prospect of an end. The buoy- ancy of spirit and the hope that animated the people at the beginning had died out, and there remained but the stern reality of severe service, small pay, and an abundance of hardship; enthusiasm could accom- plish nothing, for there was none ; consequently, money must be given in its stead.

On the 16th of March, 1778, it was voted to raise six hundred and twelve pounds to pay the men under Capt. Ward, at the rate of nine pounds per month, who were guarding the stores near Boston. On the 25th of May following fifteen hundred pounds were voted " to raise men to be sent to Gen. Washington

576

HISTORY OF NORFOLK COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

and other places, and the committee were authorized to go out of town to hire them, and to pay each man one hundred pounds or forty shillings per month to serve, to be paid in articles at the prices when the war began."

July 8, 1779, the committee was instructed to hire soldiers for the Continental army for nine months, three years, or the war, to pay them forty shillings per month in produce at the prices of 1775, or in cash upon the best terms they can make, the treasurer to borrow forty-five hundred pounds for the purpose.

State Constitution .- On the 24th of April, 1780, a committee was appointed to consider the new Consti- tution and report, which was done on the 22d of May, and this Constitution was accepted with a proposition of certain amendments, such as "where personal estate is required, it shall be expressly mentioned 'rateable estate ;' and that at least as much property shall be required for qualifications of members of Congress as for Senators, and that no member of the board of war shall be a member of the Senate or House of Repre- sentatives; that express provision be made for calling a Congress in 1795." Hon. James Humphrey, the delegate, was instructed to advocate these amendments, and also to vote for the adoption of the Constitution, even although they should not be made.

On the 19th of June the town was divided into twenty districts " as the tax-lists stand, each district to send one man into the service, and if any one refuse to go or to pay his proportion, the captain of the company is directed to draft him. Any widow or female re- fusing to pay, it shall be added to the next tax, and any district that neglects to furnish its man, the cap- tain of its company shall proceed to draft, the tax-list to be put into the hands of the three highest on the list for the purpose of calling a meeting to carry this vote into effect."

State Convention .- On the 22d of July, 1779, Procuring Men and Provisions .- On the 18th of September the town voted fifteen thousand pounds for three months' men, and on October 9th, twenty thousand pounds more to purchase beef, according to the requirement of the General Court. On Decem- ber 20th, the militia officers were appointed a com- mittee to see if they can hire nineteen men, the town's quota for the Continental army upon the last call of sand pounds were voted to procure beef on the call of the same. Non-residents were to be taxed for their share of expense in hiring the six months' men, and fifty hard dollars a year for three years, was to be the pay of men for the Continental service. Hon. James Humphrey was chosen representative to the State Convention, to meet at Cambridge on the 1st of the following September for the purpose of form- ing a constitution ; and on the 2d of August the town accepted, by a large majority, the action of the con- vention at Concord regulating prices, and a committee was chosen to carry the matter into effect, also to see that the regulations were observed. On the 16th of | the General Court, and one hundred and thirty thou- August the treasurer was authorized to borrow nine thousand pounds for the purpose of procuring soldiers. This rapid and large increase of appropriations is sim- ply the measure of the depreciation in the value of the currency of the country at that time, and by no means an indication of such an increase in the actual At the annual meeting, March 12, 1781, it was voted that " any person refusing to pay his proportion of the expense of procuring men for three years' service shall be taxed for the same and the tax collected by the officer." On the 26th of March it was voted to change the manner of raising men; voted to raise nineteen hundred hard dollars, or currency, seventy- five for one, for the purpose ; ninety pounds in specie to be paid for three years' men, one-third when mus- tered in, and one-third at the beginning of each year for two years succeeding. expense. As an illustration of this advance or rather depreciation, in 1780, March 13th, at the annual meeting, six pounds was fixed as the value of a day's work upon the highways against two shillings eight pence two years previous. At this meeting the as- sessors were instructed "to report a list of all persons taxed for estates to be amended by the town, and all upon the list were to be required to give in under oath a true list of their property, and any who do not shall pay double their assessment, and to double on each assessment until they comply with the re- quirement."

The first meeting recorded for the election of State officers was held April 2, 1781. On the 9th it was ordered that the money raised to pay soldiers should be kept by itself; and that a petition be presented to the General Court for the privilege of enlisting the men at the Castle for the three-years' service. On June 18th, " three hundred dollars, hard money, was voted for three-years' men ; one-third at the beginning of each year, or fifty dollars bounty, and ten dollars per month." On the 25th of June, men were to be " hired on the best terms that could be made for six months, and if delayed longer than that to have double wages for the over time," and for this the town would give security, a proceeding reflecting somewhat upon its credit.

On the 9th of July it was voted to raise five months' and three months' men for the Continental

577

WEYMOUTH.

service. On July 16th, a better prospect opened, when it was understood that " men could be had for fifty hard dollars and they to relinquish the Conti- nental pay." It was accordingly voted to hire them. On the 8th of October it was voted to raise twenty- five hundred hard dollars to hire men for three years, the committee to have discretionary powers in the matter. Also voted that the monthly requisition for beef be complied with. November 19th, it was voted to assess immediately the State tax to make up the deficiency in Continental soldiers; and on December 10th it was voted that the tax, fourteen hundred and thirteen pounds, four shillings, and sixpence, be paid by January 1st, following, or the men procured, each of whom was to be rated one hundred and twenty- eight pounds, nine shillings, and sixpence, and every exertion was to be used to procure money and men.

Soldiers to Hull .- It appears that the men were raised with much trouble but not until after the time set, December 20th, and the superintendent refused to receive them. A petition was therefore made to the Governor and Council to be relieved from the diffi- culty by a grant of more time. On Sept. 30, 1782, ten soldiers were sent to Hull to assist the French in throwing up fortifications for the defense of the har- bor, and these were to be paid "seven dollars per month, if not allowed that by the State;" and on December 2d, the town remitted the taxes of " Gideon Colson and Thomas Tirrell, they being in the enemies' hands when the taxes were made."

This concludes a brief sketch of the history of Wey- mouth during the Revolution as found upon its records. Very much of its service in men and money must be sought in other directions, and at the best the story | cies, but was even more prompt than many, and must be imperfectly told. Of the official rolls, many are incomplete or wholly missing, but enough remain to show that of a population of about fourteen hun- dred people, according to the estimate of Dr. Cotton Tufts, made within two years after the close of the war, the town sent into the various departments of military service upon the calls of the State and Continental authority, at least two hundred men, one in seven of its total inhabitants ; and these must have embraced very nearly all of the able-bodied men. It is true that the terms of service were very short in many in- stances, but however short, the burden of such a large number must have been enormous.

The number who perished upon the field of battle or died in the service cannot be ascertained, but prob- ably not less than thirty or forty, since a list remains of fifteen from the soldiers of the South Precinct alone. The amount of expense attending the pay- ment of the men for wages, bounties, and support, also favorably with the best of that day.

for army supplies, it is almost impossible to estimate owing to the fluctuating value of the currency, but the various votes already quoted give some idea of its sum.

Of the officers sent into the service from this town, honorable mention is made of General Solomon Lovell, who was in command of the eastern military district of which Boston was the headquarters. He also was in active service in the Rhode Island campaign in 1778, and his brigade did efficient work in the battle before Newport, in which the general was noted for his coolness and bravery. He was also the military commander of the unfortunate Penobscot expedition of the following year, which was unsuccessful, not from any fault of his, but from the want of co-opera- tion on the part of the fleet under command of Com- modore Saltonstal, who was afterwards cashiered for cowardice and inefficiency. Among the other officers may be named Capt. Thomas Nash, who served under Washington during the siege of Boston, and was officer of the day on the night when Dorchester Heights were taken possession of; Capt. Joseph. Trufant, Capt. Samuel Ward, Capt. Asa White, Lieut. Cush- ing, who was with Arnold in the Canada expedition, Lieut. Samuel Kingman, Lieut. Thomas Vinson, Lieut. David Joy, Lieut. Asa Dyer, and others.

The record is one of which Weymouth has no reason to be ashamed, although, at times, the work languished and the men refused to go, money came slowly or not at all, yet the times were such and the demands so many and great that its ability was not sufficient to meet them. It must also be borne in mind that this town was not alone in these deficien-

probably equal to the foremost. The fact stated that the town sent into the field fully two hundred men, of whom probably nearly a quarter perished, tells a story that it will be difficult to overcome. Hardly a family, or very few if any, but had one or more representatives in the field during some part of the great struggle, and some throughout its whole duration. The town was also peculiarly for- tunate in having for its leaders men of such ability and judgment as those whose names have been men- tioned, Dr. Cotton Tufts, Gen. Solomon Lovell, Maj. James Humphrey, and Deacon Nathaniel Bayley, men who were wise in council, skillful and brave in the field, and untiring in their efforts to promote the interests of their country in the momentous struggle in which it was then engaged. Some of the public papers prepared by these men in their official service are models of political documents, and will compare

578

HISTORY OF NORFOLK COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

CHAPTER XLVIII.

WEYMOUTH-(Continued).

Recovering from the Effects of the War-Work-House-Local Matters-Smallpox-Norfolk County-Attempt to divide the Town-Business Enterprises-Post-office-War with Eng- land-Alarm at Cohasset-Town Lines -Manufacturing Companies Discouraged -- Surplus Revenue-Anti-Slavery Resolutions-Town Records-Town Hall-War of the Rebel- lion-Opening Scenes-Twelfth Regiment-Raising Troops -- Military Records-Bounties-Thirty-fifth Regiment- Town Bonds and Seal-Forty-second Regiment-Contribu- tions-Difficulties -- Fourth Heavy Artillery-Final Attempt to divide the Town-Soldiers' Monument-Two Hundred and Fiftieth Anniversary-Water Question-Fire Depart- ment-Growth of the Town.

Recovering from the Effects of the War, ---! The process of recovery from the desolations occa- sioned by the war was slow. The losses had been too great, the wounds too deep, and the exhaustion too complete to be made good at once ; hence, there was great depression in trade, for there was no money upon which to transact business. The drain of men had been so severe that it was many years before the gap thus occasioned was so far filled that the ordinary duties could be done with comparative ease. The evils resulting from a currency depreciated until its value became but nominal, continued the burdens of taxation far beyond their natural limits, and thus there was stagnation and depression. Nor were these physical evils the only sources of difficulty, those of a moral nature, resulting directly from habits contracted in the army, were a calamity of far more terrible charac- ter; and not one was so fearful and far-reaching in its effects as that of the excessive use of intoxicating liquors, which had become wellnigh universal; and in consequence, large numbers of well-to-do families, who before the war were in comparative wealth and ease, became reduced, and were obliged to sell the estates that the war had left to them, to supply the demands of an exhaustless appetite. Hence, in

the estates in town changed hands. Nor has the effect of this wholly ceased even at the end of a full century from the close of the war, but is still felt in its hereditary power, by multitudes of the present generation, who have inherited this unnatural appetite from their ancestors.

the citizens. During the latter years of the war the town, after various attempts, succeeded in building, in 1779, a work-house near the centre of its territory, not far from Tirrell's mill, for the accommodation of the poor, who had increased to such a degree as to re- quire special attention ; and this house was used for that purpose until the erection of another building for the same purpose, at Weymouth Landing, in 1809.

Local Matters .- A few items of interest occur upon the records from time to time before the close of the century, among which are the following : March 12, 1787, the town officers took the oath of allegiance agreeable to a resolve of the General Court ; May 7, 1787, Dr. Cotton Tufts was chosen a delegate to the Convention in Boston, second Wednesday in January, to consider the constitution or form of government of the United States of America; April 5, 1790, the town voted to allow their representatives five shillings per day agreeably to the practice of other towns, and March 14, 1791, the town clerk was directed to read the laws of the commonwealth at the next meeting after he receives them.

Smallpox .- At a meeting held Sept. 11, 1792, the town refused to permit inoculation for the small- pox, and March 11th, following, permission was granted for the erection of a hospital for that purpose agreeable to law, under direction of the selectmen.

Norfolk County .- After the war the question of a new county was frequently raised and various action taken, sometimes favorable and sometimes opposed, but the matter was finally determined by the General Court, and the towns of Suffolk County, southerly from Boston, were set off and formed into Norfolk County in 1793 ; this, however, does not seem to have suited the good people of Weymouth, for, August 26th of that year, a committee was appointed to draw up a petition to the General Court praying to be set off from Norfolk County and to be reannexed to Suffolk, but the movement was unsuccessful, and Weymouth course of the following generation a vast number of | has remained to the present time a part of Norfolk County, although the attempt was afterwards re- newed, the reason alleged being that the shire-town was too far away.

Attempt to Divide the Town .- In 1796 the di- vision of the town was again proposed, this time by the North Precinct, and a petition presented to the General Court for that purpose. The feeling ran very in favor, and the South as decidedly opposed. For

Work-House .- For years therefore the inhabi- tants were obliged to struggle for a bare maintenance, | high, the North Precinct being almost unanimously

and were in no condition to prosecute business en- terprises or carry on the pursuits of learning; and it , the next half a dozen years the matter was in constant was a score of years before the natural resources of agitation in public and in private, in parish-meeting the town began to be developed by the enterprises of and in town-meeting, and the town was so nearly di-

579

WEYMOUTH.

vided upon the subject that the votes were sometimes in favor and sometimes against. At that time, about the year 1802, according to a canvass made for the purpose, the population was found to have increased to 1803, 965 of whom lived in the North Parish, and 838 in the South ; the ratable polls in the North 211 and in the South 200; two-fifths of the land in the North, and three-fifths in the South ; of the money at interest the South had $22,950, and the North had $20,133. The Senate voted in favor of a division but the House refused, and the matter was referred to the next session, March 3, 1803, which was equiva- lent to an indefinite postponement of the whole sub- ject. Thus the question has remained to the present, with spasmodic attempts from time to time to revive it, but never with much prospect of success.

Business Enterprises .- With the increase of population and wealth there came also a revival of business enterprises, and soon after the beginning of the nineteenth century a new era of prosperity dawned upon the town, commencing at Weymouth Landing, at the head of tide-water on Fore River, and gradually extending over other parts of the town. In 1805 a turnpike was built through Weymouth, opening a more direct communication between Boston and Plymouth, by which the village at the landing was largely the gainer. Under the lead of Capt. Samuel Arnold, Levi Bates, and others various branches of mechanical industry were started, and a new life infused into the community. Within a few years a large number of buildings were erected within a radius of half a mile. Many of them, in magni- tude and value, have hardly been surpassed to the pres- ent day. Navigation was resumed, and quite a brisk trade carried on between the town and Boston by means of sailing packets, which ran regularly ; and it was in these days that shoe manufacturing com- menced, which has since grown into such vast propor- tions.

In 1800, March 10th, there is found for the first time upon the records the warrant for the town- meeting entered in full, a custom that has been ever since continued ; and under date of May 11, 1801, are found the qualifications of voters at that time, who were to be twenty-one years of age, and to possess a freehold valued at sixty pounds, or one yielding an income of three pounds (free suffrage had not yet become the law of the land).

as to choose a committee to oppose them before the committee of the General Court, which had the mat- ter under consideration,-such men as Cotton Tufts, Eliphalet Loud, and Maj. John White being foremost in the opposition,-but the roads and the bridges were built, and the town was the better for them.

Post-Office .- In 1804, February 6th, the town instructed the selectmen to petition the Postmaster- General to establish a post-office at or near the head of navigation at Fore River. This village, although the youngest in town, was already the most important. The answer to this petition was the establishment of the first post-office in Weymouth. In 1809 the new work-house at the landing was completed, costing about sixteen hundred dollars, and was used for the accommodation of the town's poor until the purchase of the present town farm, in 1839. March 12, 1810, the selectmen and the physicians of the town were appointed a committee to superintend the inocu- lation with cowpox.

War with England .- During the war with Great Britain, in 1812-15, many of the young men of the town engaged in the service by land and sea, but the action of the town shows very little movement in connection with the subject, there being but four votes standing upon its records relating to the matter. May 21, 1812, the town voted to pay each enlisted soldier a bounty of five dollars, and ten dollars per month pay while in actual service; and June 30, 1814, it was voted to make the pay of non-commissioned officers and privates, now or hereafter in the service, equal to fifteen dollars per month, and the same to those called out upon the alarm at Cohasset, and who remained there until legally dismissed. A committee of safety was also chosen, to consist of the selectmen (three) and six others. On the 7th of November the town voted twelve hundred dollars to pay the soldiers and build a magazine.

Alarm at Cohasset .- The nearest approach to actual hostilities that the town experienced during that war was upon the occasion of this " alarm at Co- hasset," which occurred on a Sunday, Adjt. Cushing notifying the militia in the meeting-houses while the people were attending divine service. It was re- ported that a landing had been effected from an Eng- lish ship-of-war that was cruising along the coast, committing many petty depredations, and that there was necessity for immediate assistance. The infantry and artillery companies from Weymouth responded immediately, but the alarm was a false one and there was no need of troops.

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

History of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 121

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed Publication date: 1884 Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co. Number of Pages: 1534

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1534