History of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 149

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 149

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THE town of Walpole was one of the subdivisions of the old mother-town of Dedham, and for nearly one hundred years the history of this town is the history of Dedham.2

In 1635 the General Court of the colonies made a grant to twelve persons of land lying in Dedham for the purpose of founding a settlement. Nearly all of

1 The following chapter is condensed from an able historical address delivered by Henry E. Fales, Esq., at Walpole, Sept. 28. 1881.

" See history of Dedham elsewhere in this work.

Alfred Hodges

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the early settlers came to Dedham from Watertown and Roxbury, and the settlement was founded the year after (1636), and called Contentment. When these men came to Dedham to form their settlement, they joined in the following covenant :

" 1, We whose names are hereunto subscribed, doe, in the fear and reuerence of our Allmightie God, mutually; and seuerally p'mise amongst our selves and each to other p'fesse and practice one trueth according to that most p'fect rule, the foundacion whereof is everlasting love.

"2, That we shall by all means laboure to keepe of from us such as ar contrarye minded, and receaue onely such unto us as be such as may be p'bably of one harte with us as that we either knowe or may well and truely be informed, to walke in a peaceable conversation with all meekness of spirit for the edifi- cation of each other in the knowledge and faith of the Lord Jesus : and the mutuall encouragm't unto all temporall comforts in all things : seeking the good of each other out of all which may be deriuded true peace.

"3, That if at any time difference shall arise betwene p'ties of our own said towne that then such p'tie and p'ties shall pr's- ently referre all such difference unto some one, 2 or 3 others of our said socictie to be fully accorded and determined without any further delay if it possibly may bee :

" 4, That every man that now or at any time here after shall haue lotts in our own said towne shall paye his share in all such rates of money, and charges as shall be imposed upon him rate- ably in p'portion with other men as allso become freely subject vnto all such orders and constitutions as shall be necessariely had or made, now or at any time here after from this day fore- warde, as well for loveing and comfortable societie, in our own said towne as allso for the p'sperous and thriueing condicion of our said fellowshipe especially respecting the feare of God in which we desire to begine and continue what so euer we shall by his loving fauoure take in hand.

" 5, And for the better manefestation of our true resolution here in, euery man so receaued; to subscribe here vnto his name thereby obligeing both himself and his successors after him for ener as we have done."

When these men came into Dedham they adopted a liberal and honest policy towards the Indians. Al- though they had a grant of this land, yet they were careful to extinguish the title of the Indians, and as late as forty-nine years after the establishment of the settlement certain descendants of the former Indian proprietors claimed rights, and they were purchased and deeds given, and those deeds are still in preser- vation.

When these people came here to found this town the upland was mainly covered with timber. The meadows were open and could be mowed. It was from the meadows that they derived their principal stock of hay for their cattle. The woods were filled with animals, and as late as the incorporation of this town a bounty was paid for the destruction of wolves, wild-cats, and rattlesnakes.

Various circumstances tend to show that the set- tlement extended at a very early period up to within the limits of the present town of Walpole. I have

found in examining the old records and the old annals the great cedar swamp spoken of, and spoken of at a very early time. It is conceded by all the Dedham historians that that cedar swamp is the cedar swamp between the plain and South Walpole. The lumber which could be procured there was a necessity to the settlers, and was early sought for. As early as 1646, ten years after the people first established the town, Ralph Day was allowed twenty shillings for beating the drum at the meeting-house, to be paid in cedar boards. On the 4th of May, 1658, an agreement was made between the town and Eleazer Lusher and Joshua Fisher to erect a saw-mill on the Neponset River near the cedar swamp. In 1674 it passed into the possession of Thomas Clapp, and a highway was soon after laid out from the town to the cedar swamp near the saw-mill. It is said this mill stood where the mill of Caleb Ellis afterwards did, but after an examination of the records, I am pretty thoroughly convinced it stood within the limits of the present town of Walpole.

The moving cause of the settlement of the town was the support of preaching and of religious worship, and as the settlement extended south and away from Dedham, the people living upon this territory could not be accommodated by the churches in Dedham, and efforts were made for the erection of a parish or precinct in this region.

Incorporation of Town .- In 1721 a petition was presented to the General Court of the colonies, pray- ing that the south part of Dedham, which doubtless included what is now Walpole, might be incorporated as a parish for the purpose of supporting religious worship. This petition was opposed and defeated, but four years afterwards it was renewed, and Walpole was incorporated. I have not been able to find at the State-House the original petition for the incorporation of the town, although I found this petition of 1721 ; but I have here the act of the Legislature of the Province of Massachusetts Bay incorporating the town :

" Whereas the South part of the town of Dedham, within the county of Suffolk, is competently filled with inhabitants, who labor under great difficulties by their remoteness from the place of public worship, etc., and have thereupon made their application to the said town of Dedham, and likewise addressed this court, that they may be set off a distinct and separate town, and be vested with all the powers and privileges of a town ; and the inhabitants of Dedham having consented to their being set off accordingly, and a committee of this court having viewed the said town of Dedham, and reported a proper divisional line between the two parts thereof,-

" Be it therefore enacted by the Lieutenant-Governor, Council and Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the au- thority of the same, That the southerly part of the said town of

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Dedham be and hereby is set off and constituted a sep[a] [e]- rate township by the name of Walpole; the bounds of the said township to be as follows,"-I will omit the boundaries,-

" Provided, that the inhabitants of the said town of Walpole do, within the space of eighteen months from the publication of this act, erect and finish a suitable house for the publick worship of God, and, as soon as may be, procure and settle a learned, orthodox minister of good conversation, and make provision for his comfortable and honorable support ; and like- wise provide a schoolmaster to instruct their youth in writing and reading ; and that thereupon they be discharged from any further payments for the maintenance of the ministry and school in the town of Dedham."

Thus, when the political structure of Walpole was built, the church was the foundation, and the school was the cap-stone. Although the act recited that Dedham had consented to the separation, I judge from the records that they did not do it very gra- ciously.

Here is what the Dedham annalist says about it. This is all the record :

" 1724. Voted to give Jarvis Pike twenty shillings for keep- ing the boys in order on the pulpit stairs. Walpole set off from Dedham."

That is how the town of Dedham gave away her daughter. But she has grown for all that. She took her name from the great English statesman, Sir Robert Walpole, and she took the place with the other municipalities of this old province of Massa- chusetts Bay, and from that time to this she has kept step with them, and I know of nothing connected with her history for which any Walpole citizen ought to blush or hang his head with shame. From that time, 1724, we find by the records that they held their meetings, they selected their representatives, they supported their ministers, they paid for their schools, and during the different wars which followed they did their part as should well become them.

In the Crown Point expedition in the French and Indian war a company went from this town, com- manded by Capt. William Bacon. In the same ex- pedition a company went from Dedham, commanded by Capt. Eliphalet Fales, and there appears upon his roll the names of a great many Walpole men. I have seen the old rolls, worn and stained after the lapse of a hundred and twenty-five years, which con- tain the names of the men who went from within the limits of this town to serve their country against their enemies in Canada and elsewhere.

Slavery .- Slavery once existed in Walpole. The records of the church show that at least one slave was owned and kept here. One of the famous men one hundred and twenty-five years ago was Deacon Ezekiel Robbins, who kept the Brass Ball Tavern. When he died he left no children, and by his will, after pro-

viding for his wife, he bequeathed nearly all his prop- erty to the first church, and in his will was this clause:

" And further my will is, that if my negro servant, named Jack, shall live to be chargeable by reason of [ old age or infirmity, or both, and my aforesaid wife shall not sell him, as she is hereby empowered to do, then my will is that the aforesaid church in Walpole shall take tender care of him and suitably provide for him all the remainder of his life, and afford a decent burial after his death."

The records of the church show that they received the legacy with the condition. This will was admitted to probate in 1772, and Mrs. Robbins died shortly after. You will find upon the church record year after year a charge of so much paid for the support of " Jack." One year you will find a charge of six dollars for advertising him when he ran away, and one year you find a vote instructing the committee to in- quire into the legality of his marriage with a certain woman with whom he lived. In 1810, when the death of "Jack" occurred, there is a statement of the expen- diture of one hundred and sixty-three dollars and thirty- three cents for his funeral. It is evident that Jack had a big funeral, and that it was celebrated with be- coming honor. Perhaps some of you may remember the old colored woman who lived this side of the plain, and how she used to travel about from place to place. She was the woman with whom Jack lived, and con- cerning whom a church committee was instructed to inquire whether they were legally married or not.

War of the Revolution .- The first question which any patriotic citizen of Walpole will be likely to ask is, What was the course of this good town in those trying days ? " And," says Mr. Fales, " I am glad to say to you, ladies and gentlemen, that I have ex- amined the records with especial reference to these events, and I say to you that I closed the examination with pride that the town of my nativity stood up so manfully and bravely in resistance to British oppres- sion." In 1773 they passed some ringing resolutions. They were a series of resolutions reported by a com- mittee consisting of Aquilla Robbins, Enoch Ellis, Seth Bullard, George Payson, and Samuel Cheney. The resolutions were ringing with patriotism and independence, and were adopted by the town and incorporated upon the records.

Sept. 26, 1774, the town voted to join with other towns in sending a representative to the Provincial Congress, and chose Nathaniel Guild representative. Dec. 19, 1774, the fourteen articles of association of the American Congress that met at Philadelphia the 5th of September were adopted, and by vote entered upon the town's book, and there you will find them

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recorded. Then they voted to purchase two field- pieces, and chose Benjamin Kingsbury, captain, Ebenezer Clapp, and Ensign Theodore Mann a com- mittee to purchase them. Then they chose a Com- mittee to join with other towns as a Committee of Correspondence and Safety, and in 1778 this little town voted to raise by taxation five thousand pounds to help carry on the war.

But that is not all that Walpole did in the Revolu- tion. I want you to go back with me to the 19th of April, 1775, to two little towns in Middlesex County. You have heard of the lights in the Old North Church, and the rapid ride of Paul Revere through Medford and Lexington to Concord. You have heard how the minute-men rallied and were slain upon Lexington Green. You have heard how the British Regulators marched into Concord, and to enable them to carry out their work of destruction, they posted four companies of light infantry at North Bridge to guard the approach to the town, and you have heard how the minute-men from Acton and Concord and Lincoln met upon the hill, and were formed in bat- tallion by Adjutant Hosmer, the Acton men led by Capt. Isaac Davis, the young gunsmith who that morning bade his wife and little children good-by, with the words, " Hannah, take good care of the children," and was borne back that night to his home lifeless and cold. You have read that when the ques- tion of attacking this British guard was discussed, Capt. Davis said, " I haven't a man that is afraid to go," and so they marched up the river-bank by the right flank with trailed arms, and were met by a rat- tling volley from the British infantry, and Capt. Davis and Hosmer fell dead, and Major Buttrick cried, " Fire, fellow-soldiers ; for God's sake, FIRE !"

And then was fired " the shot heard round the | world."

" You know the rest. In the books you have read, How the British Regulators fired and fled,- How the farmers gave them ball for ball, From behind each fence and farm-yard wall, Chasing the Red Coats down the lane, Then crossing the fields to emerge again Under the trees at the turn of the road, And only pausing to fire and load."

Now, you will ask me what Walpole did then. I will tell you. Time and distance prevented the Wal- pole men from taking part in the battle, but she sent one hundred and fifty-seven men to respond to the alarm, with a population of less than eight hundred, -almost one-fifth of the entire population gathered and marched to Concord. Go back with me in mem- ory and see the messenger come riding in and saying, " The British are going to destroy the stores at Con-

cord !" The alarm was given, and the men gathered from the centre of the town, from the mill, from the shop, the south end, from the plain, from the other parts of the town, and took the road over to Medfield, Dover, and Sherborn, on towards Concord ; two com- panies, with twenty-five additional men in a Medfield company, responded to the alarm. Ladies and gen- tlemen, the least we can do for these men is to re- member them and speak their names, and when I found the old, brown, worn, moth-eaten rolls, these rolls of honor, I had them copied, and I want to read the names of these men, because I see before me the descendants of so many of them. I tell you the best patent of nobility that an American boy or man can have is the fact that his grandfather fought in the Revolution.

" WALPOLE, December ye 4th, 1775.

" A muster roll of the company in the colony's service which marched from S. Walpole on the alarm last April ye 19 : 1775, under the command of Capt. Jeremiah Smith in coll. John Smith's Regiment.

"Jeremiah Smith, Philip Robbins, John Boyden, Oliver Clap, Benjamin Hartshorn, Ebenezer Fales, Abel Allen, Jere- miah Fales, Elijah Plympton, Ichabod Clap, Aaron Fales, Timothy Man, Joseph Ellis, Jonathan Boyden, Jeremiah Blake, Asa Page, Joshua Allen, Samuel Copp, Joseph Tucker, Amos Morse, Aaron Blake, Joseph Fales, Eliphalet Fales, Ed- ward Cleavland, Joshua Boyden, Timothy Cudworth, George Cleavland, Matthias Puffer, Samuel Allen, Charles Page, Moses Fales, Benjamin Man, Joseph Carrill, Jr., Nathinel Guild, Jr., Fisher Hartshorn, Ebenezer Page, Joseph Page, Thomas Nason, Elijah Clap, Asa Plympton, Jonathan Carrill, Christo- pher Smith, Timothy Hartshorn, John Dexter, Jonathan Kin- dall, John Cleavland, Thomas Page, Eliphalet Clap, Moses Fales, Jr., John Frizel, Eliab Lyon, David Boyden, Jeremiah Dexter, Theodore Man, Asa Fisher, Abiather Fales, Jonathan Boyden, Jr., Abner Gould, Ebenezer Clap, Jr., Eleazer Clap, Aaron Ferington, Philip Bardians, Jr., Joseph Man, Jonathan Dexter."

" A muster roll of a militia company in Walpole in coll. John Smith's Regiment : Seth Bullard, Captain, Eliph't Ellis, Lieu- tenant, Enoch Ellis, Ensign, Samuel Smith, Thomas Pettee, Henry Partridge, Eben. Gay, Nathaniel Nason, Eben. Harts- | horn, Aaron Clark Fales, Jotham Morse, Eleazor l'artridge, Ezekiel Boyden, Benoni Morse, John Ellis, Moses Ellis, Jacob Kingsbury, Seth Kingsbury, John Boyden, Richard Hartshorn, Henry Smith, Jr., Solomon Kingsbury, Asa Ellis, Jacob Gould, Calvin Gay, Jabez Boyden, John Hartshorn, Bexalel Turner, Ziba Baker, Ebenezer Day, Samuel Thompson, James Clap, Jacob Clap, Elisha Hall, Eliphalet Ellis, Joseph Boyden, Sam- uel Guild, Joseph Guild, Ebenezer Farrington, William Pettee, Josiah Whittemore, Obadiah Morse, Nathaniel Gay, Benjamin Kingsbury, Ebenezer Fales, John Gregory, John Lewis, Abner Turner, Nicholas Harris, Joseph Kingsbury, Samuel Boyden, Ebenezer Farrington, Jr., Thomas Howard, Josiah Hall, Seth Hart, Elihu Lawrence, Moses Chamberlain, Asa Kingsbury, Isiah Lyon, Amos Ramsdale, Samuel Rhodes, Joshua Hews, John Day, John Boyden, Samuel Cheney, George Payson, Seth Payson."

Then, in addition to these full companies, one con- taining sixty-seven men, three more than the maxi-

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mum, and the other containing sixty-four men, I find twenty-five names upon the roll of a Medfield com- pany who were commanded by Capt. Sabin Mann, all Walpole men :

" Joshua Clap, Lieutenant, William Bacon, Ensign, Benja- min Carroll, Benjamin Potter, Jeremiah Boyden, Jeremiah Smith, Ichabod Reed, Samuel Hartshorn, Elias Mann, James Fales, Willaber Nason, Amos Turner, Seth Clap, Samuel Fuller, Joshua Clap, 3d, David Purrington, James Smith, David Morse, Peter Lyon, Abel Baker, Abiel Pettee, Stephen Fuller, Joseph Day, John Lawrence, Stephen Dexter."

One hundred and fifty-seven men ! And it must be that they included every able-bodied man, with a fair share of the boys and cripples. Later on in the war a company from Walpole, under command of Capt. Aaron Guild, helped build the intrenchments upon Dorchester Heights, which movement resulted in the evacuation of Boston by the British. Another company marched from Walpole under Capt. Fisher in what was known as the Warwick expedition. Be- sides these, there were men that served in the Conti- mental army. You have all heard the story of Hol- land Wood, the old artilleryman, who was with Washington when he crossed the Delaware, and you have heard the story of his strength, when, at the battle of Monmouth, his gun fell from its position, and with his own unaided strength he raised it and put it upon its carriage, and when it was so hot it burnt through the sleeve of his coat. I assure you our good old town stood up in the front ranks in those days, and I do not believe the breed has all run out yet.

After the close of the war the town went on as did other towns, the people cultivating their farms, building their dams, erecting their mills, filling their school-houses, until the war of 1812 came on. We all of us know of the old historic companies of our fathers, the Walpole Light Infantry, formed in 1802 under command of Capt. Samuel Fales, and when it was called upon by the government, under the com- mand of Capt. Warren Clap, they marched to Boston and performed all the duties that were required of them.

After the war came peace once more, and then we went on with our career of prosperity as a town until the dark days of the Rebellion ; but these events are so fresh in the minds of you all that I need not dis- cuss them at length here. I know, and you know, that at the first call Walpole sent her men to fight the battles of liberty and union, and the events of that war made our country and government a stronger and better government and country than ever it was before.

CHAPTER LX.

WALPOLE-(Continued).

Ecclesiastical History-First Congregational Society-Ortho- dox Congregational Church-Congregational Church, East Walpole-Methodist Episcopal Church-Methodist Episcopal Church, South Walpole.

The First Congregational Society in Walpole.1 -The history of this society dates from the incor- poration of the town, in 1724, though religious ser- vices were undoubtedly held in the settlement before that date.

The earliest record bears date March 30, 1725. It was voted then by the people of the town to build a meeting house. Subsequently measures were taken for the " support of preaching" and the securing of a minister to live with the people.

Many meetings were held over the perplexing question of the proper size of the house, but at last it was decided to build one thirty-eight feet long and thirty-two feet wide, smaller than was at first pro- posed.

Pending the erection of the house religious meet- ings were held in the homes of the people, as were the regular town-meetings.

In 1726 work was actually begun on the building, but for many years it remained unfinished. Therefore there is no account of a dedication. There is no record of a formal "raising." There were, originally, but twelve pews, but this number was greatly increased as the congregation grew, and as the people tired of the rough benches. The congregation steadily in- creased until, in 1743, the seats on the floor and in the gallery being all occupied, the town voted to build " a second tier of galleries."

The first minister called by the town was Rev. Joseph Belcher, who wrote his acceptance May 17, 1728. He was to receive fifty pounds as salary and one hundred pounds settlement ; fifty pounds of the settlement to be paid the year he was ordained, the remaining fifty the year following. For some reason, not recorded, the town voted, May 5, 1729, to dismiss Mr. Belcher.

June 8, 1729, Rev. Phillips Payson preached for the first time in Walpole. Jan. 30, 1730, he ac- cepts a call of the town, voted Oct. 20, 1729. The letters of Mr. Belcher and Mr. Payson are in strong contrast. The one is fervent, enthusiastic, abound- ing in pious phrases, the other is brief, business-like. The one condition stated in Mr. Payson's letter is,

I By Rev. J. H. Weeks.

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that the town shall furnish him all the firewood he may need, that it shall be four paces in length, and that it shall be brought to the house.

Mr. Payson was ordained and installed minister of the town Sept. 16, 1730. The town, when making preparation for this great event, voted that Ebenezer Fales should entertain the ministers taking part in the ordination service, and that he should be paid " five shillings a man." The ministry of Mr. Payson covers a period of nearly forty-eight years. It is not stated who presided at the organization of the church. July 2, 1730, the following persons were embodied : James Bardens, Ebenezer Fales, Eleazer Partridge, Samuel Kingsbury, Peter Fales, Thomas Clapp, Joseph Carryl, Moses Chamberlain, Ebenezer Rob- bins, Joseph Smith. Samuel Kingsbury was the first deacon of the church, having been elected Oct. 8, 1730. Ebenezer Fales, elected Dec. 10, 1731, was the second deacon. The whole number of members admitted to the church by Mr. Payson was two hun- dred and seventy-two.

In the early years of his ministry Mr. Payson was greatly troubled by the unchristian behavior of some of the members of the church. There are many records of| " discipline." There was one man in particular who was the minister's thorn in the flesh. He seemed to have a genius for mischief, but the church was faith- ful to the commandment and forgave him many times. As the years pass, however, cases of discipline grow rarer, the pastor's good influence doubtless being one of the causes.

Very little matter of general interest is recorded for many years. At every annual town-meeting the two important items of the minister's salary and his fire- wood are discussed and voted upon. As the minister grew towards his prime and the society enlarged, it was easy to pass a vote for the original salary, and even to increase it. As the minister's physical and mental powers waned, it was deemed necessary to reduce the salary somewhat. But, on the whole, a good understanding existed between minister and people through this long pastorate, and as young and old man, Mr. Payson enjoyed the respect of his people, while most of the years were passed in quiet and peaceful labor. The thoughtfulness of his people is shown in a vote of 1772.

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History of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 149

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